THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 


THE 

FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 


BY 


JOHN  PHILIP  HILL 

FORMERLY  UNITED  STATES  DISTRICT  ATTORNEY 
FOR  MARYLAND 


f!Rfter3iofEreg|| 


BOSTON   AND   NEW  YORK 

HOUGHTON  MIFFLIN  COMPANY 

(£bc  fitocr?i&e  $tcs£  Cambribge 

1916 


COPYRIGHT,    I916,    BY  JOHN   PHILIP   HILL 
ALL    RIGHTS    RESERVED 

Published  April  iqib 


3 

wot 

PREFACE 

Even  since  1903,  when  this  book  was  started,  many 
important  changes  have  occurred  in  the  Federal  Execu- 
tive. In  1903  there  was  no  single  book  that  adequately 
j   treated  the  President's  Cabinet  and  the  executive  de- 
^   partments.  Since  then  several  books  on  aspects  of  this 
•^    general  subject  have  been  written.    With  a  few  excep- 
X  tions  (notably  Dr.  Learned' s  admirable  book  on  The 
President's  Cabinet,  Dr.  Fairlie's  The  National  Adminis- 
V  tration,  and  Mr.  Haskin's  The  American  Government), 
these  are  merely  compilations  from  the  annual  reports 
>   of  the  heads  of  the  executive  departments,  and  other 
government  publications.   The  development  and  delim- 
^   itation  of  the  functions  of  the  Executive  are  an  index  of 
the  growth  of  the  Federal  Government.  Much  remains 
to  be  written  about  it.   In  1903  I  was  Assistant  in  Gov- 


^    ernment  in  two  courses  given  at  Harvard  by  Pro- 


fessor  Frederic  J.  Stimson  and  the  Honorable  Charles 
J  S.  Hamlin  dealing  with  American  Government.  In  1905 
I  gave  seven  lectures  at  Johns  Hopkins  for  Dr.  W.  W. 
Willoughby  on  "The  Executive  Administration  of  the 
United  States";  in  the  spring  of  1912,  at  Goucher  Col- 
lege, three  lectures  on  the  "Creation  and  Development 
of  the  Cabinet";  and  in  November,  1912,  two  lectures  at 
the  University  of  Virginia,  one  on  "The  Growth  of  the 
Cabinet-Council  Idea  in  the  Federal  Executive"  and 


vi  PREFACE 

the'other  on  "  The  Department  of  Justice."  The  purpose 
of  this  book,  based  upon  the  above  lectures,  is  to  add  a 
little  to  the  studies  on  the  subject  and  to  assist  in  an 
understanding  of  the  creation,  development,  organiza- 
tion, and  functions  of  the  Federal  Executive.  To-day, 
the  population  of  the  United  States  is  101,208,315,  ex- 
clusive of  Alaska  and  the  insular  possessions.  These 
people  and  their  vast  riches  are  not  adequately  pro- 
tected from  foreign  interference.  A  thorough  under- 
standing of  the  Federal  Government  of  to-day  is  the 
first  step  toward  proper  National  Defense. 

John  Philip  Hill. 

3  West  Franklin  Street, 
Baltimore,  February,  1916. 


CONTENTS 

I.  The  Federal  Government 1 

II.  Creation  of  the  Executive  Departments  and  the 

Cabinet 12 

III.  Development  of  the  Executive  Departments  and 

the  Cabinet 27 

IV.  Status  of  the  Heads  of  the  Executive  Depart- 

ments COLLECTIVELY,  AS  AN  ADVISORY  COUNCIL  OR 

Cabinet 41 

V.  Status  of  the  Heads  of  the  Executive  Depart- 
ments INDIVIDUALLY,  AS  CONSTITUTIONAL  OFFI- 
CERS of  the  Government 52 

VI.  Organization  of  the   Executive  Departments    .    65 

VII.  Functions  of  the  Executive  Departments  in  Main- 
taining a  "  More  Perfect  Union."  The  Depart- 
ments of  State,  the  Treasury,  and  the  Interior    76 

VIII.  Functions  of  the  Executive  Departments  in 
"Insuring  Domestic  Tranquillity."  The  De- 
partments of  War,  the  Navy,  and  Justice       .  121 

IX.  Functions  of  the  Executive  Departments  in 
"Promoting  the  General  Welfare."  The  De- 
partments of  Agriculture,  Commerce,  and 
Labor 158 


viii  CONTENTS 

X.  Functions  of  the  Executive  Departments  in  Se- 
curing Certain  of  "The  Blessings  of  Liberty." 
The  Post-Office  Department 182 

XI.  The  Chief  Executives  and  the  Development  of 

the  Executive  Departments 194 

XII.  Probable  Developments  in  the  Federal  Execu- 
tive     215 

APPENDIX 

A.  List  of  Presidents  and  Vice-Presidents  and  the 

Length  of  Service  rendered 239 

B.  The  Constitution  of  the  United  States  of  America  240 

INDEX 259 


THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 


THE 
FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

CHAPTER  I 

THE  FEDERAL  GOVERNMENT 

Lord  Bryce,  in  his  introduction  to  the  most  recent 
edition  of  "The  American  Commonwealth,"  says, 
"Thoughtful  Europeans  have  begun  to  realize,  whether 
with  satisfaction  or  regret,  the  enormous  and  daily  in- 
creasing influence  of  the  United  States."  Most  Ameri- 
cans are  so  occupied  with  the  myriad  interests  that  are 
creating  this  enormous  and  increasing  power  that  they 
do  not  realize  the  great  changes  that  are  going  on  in  the 
Government  of  the  United  States  itself.  In  October, 
1914,  the  American  Bar  Association  celebrated  at  Wash- 
ington the  one  hundred  and  twenty-fifth  anniversary  of 
the  Supreme  Court.  In  this  century  and  a  quarter,  al- 
though the  questions  with  which  it  deals  are  somewhat 
different  from  those  it  considered  in  1789,  the  organ- 
ization and  functions  of  the  Supreme  Court  have  not 
changed.  Should  a  celebration  be  held  of  the  one  hun- 
dred and  twenty-fifth  anniversary  of  the  creation  of  the 
Federal  Executive,  most  of  the  celebrants  would  be 
amazed  at  a  realization  of  the  changes  that  have  taken 
place  in  the  National  Administration  since  General 
Washington  first  became  President. 


2  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

The  Chevalier  de  Pontgibaud  (Marquis  de  More), 
who  had  served  through  the  Revolution  as  aide-de- 
camp to  the  Marquis  de  Lafayette,  revisited  the  United 
States  a  few  years  after  the  institution  of  the  Federal 
Government.  He  recorded : x  — 

"The  Government  officials  were  as  simple  in  their 
manners  as  ever.  I  had  occasion  to  call  upon  Mr. 
McHenry,  the  Secretary  of  War.  It  was  about  eleven 
o'clock  in  the  morning  when  I  called.  There  was  no 
sentinel  at  the  door,  all  the  rooms,  the  walls  of  which 
were  covered  with  maps,  were  open,  and  in  the  midst  of 
the  solitude  I  found  two  clerks,  each  sitting  at  his  own 
table,  engaged  in  writing.  At  last  I  met  a  servant,  or 
rather  the  servant,  for  there  was  but  one  in  the  house, 
and  asked  for  the  Secretary.  He  replied  that  his  master 
was  absent  for  the  moment,  having  gone  to  the  barber's 
to  be  shaved.  Mr.  McHenry's  name  figured  in  the  State 
Budget  for  $2000  (10,500  francs),  a  salary  quite  suffi- 
cient in  a  country  where  the  Secretary  for  War  goes  in 
the  morning  to  his  neighbor,  the  barber  at  the  corner, 
to  get  shaved.  I  was  as  much  surprised  to  find  all  the 
business  of  the  War  Office  transacted  by  two  clerks,  as  I 
was  to  hear  that  the  Secretary  had  gone  to  the  barber's." 

Should  the  Chevalier  visit  the  War  Department  and 
the  other  executive  departments  of  the  Government  to- 
day, he  might  find  the  government  officials  as  simple  in 
their  manners  as  before,  but  he  would  find  a  very  differ- 
ent War  Office  and  a  very  different  Federal  Executive 
from  that  which  so  surprised  him  in  the  early  days  of  the 
1  A  French  Volunteer  of  the  War  of  Independence,  p.  124. 


THE  FEDERAL  GOVERNMENT  3 

Republic.  The  change  in  the  Federal  Executive  is  one 
of  the  most  remarkable  things  in  the  history  of  the 
nation.  Let  us  consider  for  a  moment  the  status  of  one 
of  the  executive  departments  then  and  now.  Nothing 
more  strikingly  illustrates  the  growth  of  the  Federal 
Government  and  the  development  of  the  Cabinet  and 
the  executive  departments  than  the  history  of  the 
attorney-generalship . 

The  first  Attorney-General  of  the  United  States,  Ed- 
mund Randolph,  of  Virginia,  spoke  of  himself  as  "a  sort 
of  mongrel  between  the  State  and  the  United  States; 
called  an  officer  of  some  rank  in  the  latter  and  thrust  out 
to  get  a  livelihood  in  the  former."  l  Even  as  late  as  1817, 
Secretary  of  State  Monroe  called  attention  to  the  fact 
that  the  Attorney-General  had  at  the  seat  of  the  Federal 
Government  "no  apartment  for  business,  no  clerks,  nor 
a  messenger,  nor  stationery  or  fuel  allowed.  These  have 
been  supplied  by  the  officer  himself  at  his  own  expense." 2 
Elbridge  Gerry,  of  Massachusetts,  and  other  jealous 
guardians  of  the  rights  of  the  States,  fearful  of  the  power 
of  the  newly  created  Federal  Executive,  provided  Wash- 
ington with  only  three  advisers  who  were  heads  of  ex- 
ecutive departments,  the  Secretaries  of  State,  Treasury, 
and  War,  but  from  the  first  the  Attorney-General  was 
considered  a  member  of  the  advisory  council  composed 
of  these  three  Secretaries  and  himself,  which  has  come 
to  be  recognized  as  the  President's  Cabinet.    Yet, 

1  E.  M.  D.  Conway,  Omitted  Chapters,  p.  135. 

2  Annals  of  Congress,  14th  Cong.,  2d  Sess.  (1816-17),  pp.  699  and 
700. 


4  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

although  considered  a  member  of  Washington's  first 
Cabinet,  Randolph  was  not  the  head  of  an  executive 
department,  and  was  not  even  required  to  reside  at  the 
Capital.  His  powers  were  insignificant  and  his  compen- 
sation so  small  that  he  was  expected  to  support  himself 
from  his  private  practice.  The  power  and  functions  of 
the  present  head  of  the  Department  of  Justice,  if  they 
could  be  known  to  the  Anti-Federalists  of  Randolph's 
time,  would  cause  those  eminent  gentlemen  to  turn  in 
their  graves. 

The  fiftieth  Attorney-General  no  longer  suffers  for 
lack  of  an  apartment  for  business  and  a  clerk,  but  he  is 
the  head  of  the  great  Department  of  Justice,  the  total 
number  of  whose  officials  and  employees  is  about  5700,  * 
of  which  number  2070  are  appointed  by  him.  The 
Solicitor-General,  the  Solicitor  of  the  State  Department, 
the  Solicitor  of  the  Treasury,  numerous  assistant  attor- 
neys-general, attorneys,  and  special  attorneys  in  Wash- 
ington, numbering  more  than  300,  86  district  attor- 
neys, and  numerous  special  assistants,  assistant  district 
attorneys,  and  other  officials,  are  at  present  under  the 
direction  of  that  Attorney-General,  who  in  the  days  of 
President  Monroe  had  neither  stationery  nor  fuel. 

Kipling  tells  us  that  in  the  twilight  of  the  Magic 
Jungle,  in  a  sort  of  singsong  to  little  Mowgli,  old  Baloo 
recited,  — 

"As  the  creeper  that  girdles  the  tree-trunk, 
The  law  runneth  forward  and  back."  2 

1  Register  of  the  Department  of  Justice,  1915. 
8  Second  Jungle  Book. 


THE  FEDERAL  GOVERNMENT  5 

And  so,  in  anti-trust  prosecutions,  in  the  crusade  against 
the  white  slaver,  in  the  enforcement  of  pure-food  laws, 
in  interstate  commerce  cases,  in  the  suppression  of 
fraudulent  use  of  the  mails,  the  power  of  the  Attorney- 
General  runs  forward  and  back  throughout  all  the 
States  of  this  great  Union,  and  the  activities  of  the  De- 
partment of  Justice  wipe  out  state  lines  and  from  year  to 
year  increase  the  power  of  the  Federal  Government  and 
its  Executive,  of  whose  growth  they  are  the  most  strik- 
ing illustrations. 

The  growth  of  the  executive  power  has  attended  the 
growth  of  the  nation,  and  its  development  into  its  pres- 
ent importance  has  been  necessitated  by  the  fusion 
of  the  federation  of  States  into  a  strongly  centralized 
American  nation.  To  follow  in  detail  the  changes  in  the 
organization  of  the  executive  departments,  and  to  ex- 
amine the  methods  and  reasons  of  these  changes  would 
take  us  far  into  the  life  history  of  the  Republic. 

In  1890,  John  Fiske  wrote:  "In  signing  or  vetoing 
bills  passed  by  Congress  the  President  shares  in  legis- 
lation, and  is  virtually  a  third  house.  In  his  other  capac- 
ities he  is  the  chief  executive  officer  of  the  Federal  Union ; 
and  inasmuch  as  he  appoints  the  other  great  executive 
officers,  he  is  really  the  head  of  the  executive  depart- 
ment, not  —  like  the  governor  of  a  State  —  a  mere 
member  of  it."  l  In  1908,  Woodrow  Wilson  compared 
the  President,  as  the  makers  of  the  Constitution  in- 
tended him  to  be,  with  what  he  had  actually  become. 
"His  veto  upon  legislation  was  his  only  'check'  on 
1  Civil  Government  in  the  United  States,  p.  232. 


6  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

Congress,  —  was  a  power  of  restraint,  not  of  guidance. 
He  was  empowered  to  prevent  bad  laws,  but  he  was  not 
to  be  given  an  opportunity  to  make  good  ones.  As  a 
matter  of  fact,  he  has  become  very  much  more.  He  has 
become  the  leader  of  his  party  and  the  guide  of  the  na- 
tion in  political  purpose,  and  therefore  in  legal  action."  * 
The  theory  expressed  by  Professor  Wilson  in  1908  has 
been  the  practice  of  President  Wilson  as  Chief  Execu- 
tive, and  as  a  "third  house"  of  the  legislative  depart- 
ment he  has  certainly  not  confined  himself  to  the  powers 
of  the  "third  house"  as  described  by  Fiske.  The  Fed- 
eral Executive  has  outgrown,  naturally  and  properly, 
the  bounds  ascribed  it  by  the  makers  of  the  Consti- 
tution. 

The  Executive,  as  it  exists  to-day,  is  one  of  the  most 
important  elements  in  the  life  of  the  nation.  To  under- 
stand the  meaning  of  the  national  life  a  knowledge  of  the 
Cabinet  and  of  the  organization  and  work  done  by  the 
Executive  Departments  is  necessary,  and  while  much 
has  been  written  of  the  executive  power,  little  has  been 
written  upon  the  administrative  side  of  the  Executive, 
as  carried  out  by  the  departments.  As  President  Wilson 
remarks,  "  It  is  easier  to  write  of  the  President  than  of 
the  Presidency."  2  The  voluminous  reports  of  the  heads 
of  the  departments,  the  provisions  of  the  various  stat- 
utes of  the  United  States  relating  to  the  departments, 
miscellaneous  reports,  congressional  and  department 
records,  all  set  forth  the  business  that  the  great  govern- 

1  Constitutional  Government  in  the  United  States,  p.  60. 

2  Ibid.,  p.  57. 


THE  FEDERAL  GOVERNMENT  7 

mental  corporation  conducts.  They  also  show  in  detail 
the  methods  by  which  this  business  is  carried  on.  From 
them  the  student  may  learn  how  the  State  Department 
settles  the  rights  of  some  naturalized  citizen  who  desires 
to  revisit  his  former  country,  but  who  is  claimed  by  that 
country  to  be  liable  for  military  service,  or  how  the 
Republic  of  Panama  sprang  into  life  and  American  dom- 
ination of  the  Isthmus  was  secured.  In  the  same  way 
the  methods  of  customs  collections  and  post-office 
establishments  may  be  learned.  A  knowledge  of  these 
matters  is  essential  to  an  understanding  of  daily  news- 
paper discussions,  reports  of  the  debates  and  actions  of 
Congress,  and  of  the  position  of  the  Government.  After 
a  brief  discussion  of  the  creation  and  status  of  the  execu- 
tive departments,  it  is  my  purpose  to  set  forth  the 
organization  of  these  departments,  and  to  indicate  the 
matters  with  which  they  deal  and  their  methods  of  work. 

Before  doing  this,  however,  it  may  be  well  to  say  a  few 
words  about  the  Federal  Government  generally.  In  the 
rush  of  our  American  life  it  is  amazing  how  much  we  can 
forget,  and  I  shall  be  pardoned  for  speaking  briefly  of 
things  that  we  are  all  supposed  to  have  once  and  for  all 
time  learned  in  the  schoolroom. 

During  the  Revolutionary  War,  the  common  inter- 
ests of  the  allied  colonies,  almost  exclusively  the  carry- 
ing-on of  the  war,  were  entrusted  to  the  Continental 
Congress.  This  body,  possessing  theoretically  little 
power,  exercised,  however,  the  greatest  real  power  over 
the  allied  colonies.  It  combined  in  itself  only  the  legis- 
lative and  executive  functions,  for  at  that  time  there  did 


8  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

not  exist  and  there  was  no  necessity  for  any  common 
judicial  system  for  the  allied  sovereignties  that  later 
became  States  of  our  Union.  The  executive  functions 
of  the  Continental  Congress  were  exercised  through  its 
various  committees  and  officers,  but  furnished  little 
of  permanent  value  to  the  American  political  system. 
After  the  Revolution  the  government  of  the  allied 
States  under  the  Articles  of  Confederation  for  a  time 
gave  to  the  former  colonies  a  more  permanent  and 
stronger  common  life,  but  that  weak  Government  soon 
gave  way  to  the  present  Constitution  under  which  the 
nation  has  attained  federal  life  and  power. 

We  learned  in  school  that  the  Federal  Government 
of  the  United  States  consists  of  three  coordinate  and 
theoretically  independent  branches,  the  executive,  leg- 
islative, and  judicial.  We  all  know  in  a  general  way 
that  the  Congress  makes  the  laws  and  that  the  Execu- 
tive and  the  courts  carry  them  out.  The  States'  rights 
men  in  the  Constitutional  Convention  were  extremely 
jealous  of  the  power  of  the  Executive,  and  I  shall  show 
you  in  the  coming  chapters  that  they,  as  States'  rights 
men,  were  justified  in  their  fears,  for  to-day,  while  the 
express  train  and  the  telephone  have  eliminated  state 
lines  for  all  commercial  purposes,  the  effect  of  recent 
legislation  is  to  efface  state  lines  for  many  administra- 
tive purposes.  Before  taking  up  the  executive  branch  of 
the  Federal  Government,  it  will  be  well  to  glance  at  the 
Government  as  a  whole. 

The  Executive  consists  of  the  President,  and,  poten- 
tially, the  Vice-President,  —  who,  aside  from  the  fact 


THE  FEDERAL  GOVERNMENT  9 

that  he  presides  over  the  Senate,  has  no  place  in  the 
Government,  —  and  the  ten  members  of  the  President's 
Cabinet.  The  Cabinet,  as  such,  is  not  known  to  the 
Constitution.  The  legal  status  of  its  members  arises 
from  their  being  heads  of  the  executive  departments, 
and  after  all  they  are  legally  only  arms  of  the  President. 
The  power  of  the  President  and  his  place  in  the  na- 
tional life  is  quite  different  to-day  from  the  conception 
of  that  office  held  by  the  framers  of  the  Constitution. 
They  planned  a  Chief  Magistrate,  non-partisan,  calm 
and  aloof  from  the  throbbing  political  questions  that 
might  agitate  the  legislative  branch  of  the  Government. 
Above  the  turmoil  of  political  parties  the  President  was 
dispassionately  to  carry  out  the  laws  in  much  the  same 
non-political  manner  as  the  Chief  Justice  was  to  head 
the  Judiciary.  There  were  certain  common  interests 
that  drew  the  thirteen  States  together:  they  wished  to 
provide  by  the  Constitution  only  for  the  needs  as  they 
saw  them  then  —  an  army  for  external  use,  a  diplo- 
matic service,  also  for  external  use,  and  a  treasury  to 
get  money  for  the  above  external  uses.  The  framers  of 
the  Constitution  did  not  dream  that  to-day  the  Presi- 
dent would  be  the  leader  of  the  dominant  political  party 
in  the  nation ;  they  did  not  dream  that  he  would  be  the 
one  man  in  the  nation  primarily  responsible  to  the  peo- 
ple for  the  enactment  into  laws  of  their  will;  they  did 
not  dream  that  the  Chief  Magistrate  of  the  new  Repub- 
lic would  exercise  in  time  the  combined  powers  of  the 
English  King  and  his  Prime  Minister;  but  then  they  did 
not  dream  that  one  arm  of  the  President  would  be  a 


10  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

Secretary  of  Labor,  whose  duties  would  run  into  the 
domestic  and  industrial  life  of  each  of  their  jealously 
guarded  States.  The  creation  of  a  Department  of  Labor 
in  1913,  one  hundred  and  twenty-four  years  after  the 
inauguration  of  the  Federal  Government,  for  the  pur- 
pose of  fostering,  promoting,  and  developing  the  welfare 
of  the  wage-earners  of  the  United  States,  improving 
their  conditions,  and  advancing  their  opportunities  for 
profitable  employment  regardless  of  state  lines,  is  the 
farthest  point  in  the  development  of  a  strongly  central- 
ized Federal  Government.  At  the  same  time  it  is  but 
an  indication  of  the  enormous  increase  in  the  power  of 
the  Executive.  Alexander  Hamilton  and  the  Federalists 
would  find  this  increased  power  of  the  President  quite  to 
their  liking,  but  the  President  of  to-day  is  a  more  power- 
ful factor  in  the  Federal  Government  than  even  they 
dared  expect  in  1789.  Party  organization  and  the 
machinery  of  legal  primary  elections  were  not  thought 
of  in  the  days  when  President  Washington  gravely  and 
with  due  decorum  considered  the  status  of  his  Cabinet 
and  kept  the  Vice-President  out  of  it;  but  neither  were 
express  trains  and  telephones.  We  find  the  latter  ex- 
tremely convenient  and  the  nation  no  longer  fears  the 
power  of  the  President. 

Besides  the  Executive  there  are  to-day  in  the  frame- 
work of  the  Federal  Government  two  other  branches. 
With  the  Judiciary  this  book  will  have  little  to  do.  As 
to  the  other  branch  of  the  Government,  the  Congress  of 
the  United  States,  it  is  only  necessary  to  say  that,  while 
it  theoretically  makes  the  laws,  more  and  more  in  these 


THE  FEDERAL  GOVERNMENT  11 

days  of  the  political  leadership  of  the  President,  in 
much  important  legislation  Congress  merely  enacts 
into  law  the  principles  that  the  majority  party  has  de- 
clared in  its  platform.  The  Judiciary  and  the  legislative 
branch  of  the  Government  have  departed  little  from  the 
theories  of  the  Fathers.  There  are  more  courts  and  the 
Congress  is  larger,  but  the  fundamental  concepts  of 
neither  have  greatly  changed.  Congress  makes  a  greater 
number  and  more  far-reaching  laws,  but  its  machinery 
is  the  same.  The  courts  try  more  cases  of  a  more  far- 
reaching  character,  but  their  machinery  is  the  same. 
The  Executive  has  changed.  In  the  coming  years  it  will 
change  more.  Seats  in  Congress  for  the  members  of  the 
Cabinet  may  come  in  time,  and  we  may  have  places  in 
the  legislative  department  for  arms  of  the  Executive  for 
which  the  Constitution  does  not  specifically  provide. 
The  development  of  the  Cabinet  and  the  executive  de- 
partments is  the  most  interesting  thing  in  the  growth  of 
the  Federal  Government.  Let  us  see  on  what  basis  and 
out  of  what  they  were  created. 


CHAPTER  II 

CREATION  OF  THE  EXECUTIVE  DEPARTMENTS  AND 
THE  CABINET 

The  executive  business  of  the  United  States  has, 
since  the  organization  of  the  Government,  been  carried 
on  by  the  executive  departments,  which  have  been  in- 
creased from  time  to  time  as  the  requirements  of  the 
Government  demanded.  The  Departments  of  State,  the 
Treasury,  and  War  were  created  by  the  First  Congress 
in  1789,  and  the  Department  of  the  Navy  was  estab- 
lished soon  after.  The  Post-Office  and  the  Department 
of  Justice  had  their  beginnings  in  the  same  period,  al- 
though they  did  not  take  rank  as  executive  depart- 
ments till  much  later.  The  Department  of  Commerce 
and  Labor,  created  in  1903,  the  Department  of  Labor 
carved  from  it  in  1913,  with  the  Agricultural  and  In- 
terior Departments,  belong  to  the  latter  half  of  the 
history  of  the  nation.  There  are  to-day  ten  coordinate 
executive  departments. 

The  Constitution  provides  that  "the  executive  power 
shall  be  vested  in  a  President  of  the  United  States  of 
America."  *  It  then  proceeds  to  declare  the  length  of 
time  the  President  shall  hold  office,  the  method  of  his 
election  and  the  qualifications  of  a  President.  The  sec- 
tion contains  no  specific  enumeration  of  the  executive 
power  conferred.  Goodnow,  in  his  treatise  on  "Com- 
1  Art.  ii,  par.  1. 


CREATION  OF  THE  DEPARTMENTS       13 

parative  Administrative  Law,"  l  says  that  these  words 
"executive  power"  meant  "that  the  President  was  to 
have  a  military  and  political  power  rather  than  an 
administrative  power.  The  meaning  of  these  words  is 
further  explained  by  the  enumeration  of  the  specific 
powers  which  were  granted  to  the  President  by  the 
Constitution.  These  are  the  same  powers  possessed  by 
the  governors  of  the  Commonwealths.  They  are  the 
power  of  military  command,  the  diplomatic  power,  the 
limited  veto  power,  the  power  of  pardon,  the  power  to 
call  an  extra  session  of  Congress,  to  adjourn  it  in  case  of 
a  disagreement  between  the  houses,  and  the  power  to 
send  a  message  to  the  Congress.  The  general  grant  of 
the  executive  power  to  the  President  means  little  except 
that  the  President  was  to  be  the  authority  in  the 
Government  that  was  to  exercise  the  powers  afterward 
enumerated  as  his.  The  only  other  enumerated  power 
is  an  administrative  power,  and  it  is  also  the  only 
purely  administrative  power  that  is  mentioned  clearly 
in  the  Constitution.  This  is  the  power  of  appointment. 
.  .  .  Beyond  the  power  of  appointment  he  had,  so  far  as 
the  express  provisions  of  the  Constitution  were  con- 
cerned, no  control  over  the  administration  at  all." 

The  complex  system  of  executive  departments  is  not 
provided  by  the  Constitution.  It  has  arisen  by  acts  of 
Congress,  a  slow  and  often  tentative  construction,  pro- 
vided as  the  national  interests  became  more  varied  and 
far-reaching,  and  the  needs  of  administration  became 
more  exacting.  Our  form  of  government  is  that  denomi- 
1  Vol.  i,  p.  62. 


14  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

nated  as  rigid  because  of  its  foundation  on  a  written 
instrument ;  but  like  many  of  our  governmental  institu- 
tions that  are  the  product  of  gradual  evolution,  the  law 
regulating  the  proceedings  of  the  executive  depart- 
ments, and  the  relations  of  the  Cabinet  to  the  President 
and  Congress,  is  the  law  of  the  unwritten  Constitution.1 

The  Constitution  provides  that  the  President  "may 
require  the  opinion  in  writing  of  the  principal  officer  in 
each  of  the  executive  departments,  upon  any  subject 
relating  to  the  duties  of  their  respective  offices."  2  The 
only  other  mention  of  the  executive  departments  in  the 
Constitution  follows  the  provision  for  appointment  by 
the  President,  with  the  consent  of  the  Senate,  of  all  offi- 
cers of  the  United  States  whose  appointments  are  not 
otherwise  provided  for  by  the  Constitution.  By  this 
clause  of  the  Constitution  "  Congress  may  by  law  vest 
the  appointment  of  such  inferior  officers  as  they  think 
proper  in  the  President  alone,  in  the  Courts  of  Law,  or 
in  the  heads  of  departments."  3  Upon  this  meager 
foundation  have  been  created  all  ten  great  organiza- 
tions that  to-day  administer  the  domestic  and  foreign 
business  of  the  United  States. 

The  Articles  of  Confederation,  which  preceded  the 
Constitution,  contained  no  provision  for  any  executive 
departments,  and  the  President  of  Congress  under  the 
Confederation  was  in  no  sense  an  executive  head  of 
the  Government;  yet  the  Continental  Congress  and  the 
Congress  under  the  Confederation  had  been  compelled 

1  Woodburn,  American  Republic,  p.  191. 

2  Art.  ii,  sec.  2,  clause  1.  3  Ibid.,  clause  2. 


CREATION  OF  THE  DEPARTMENTS   15 

to  create  some  sort  of  executive  machinery  for  carrying 
on  the  struggle  for  independence,  and  for  conducting  the 
business  of  the  weak  Union  that  was  formed  after  the 
peace  with  England.  When,  on  April  1,  1789,  the  First 
Congress  under  the  Constitution  was  organized  in  Fed- 
eral Hall  in  New  York,  and  settled  down  to  the  task  of 
providing  for  the  organization  of  the  Government,  it 
found  some  models  for  the  executive  department.  There 
was  a  bureau  of  foreign  afFairs,  and  a  bureau  of  war, 
each  under  the  direction  of  an  officer  denominated  a 
secretary.  There  was  also  a  board  of  commissioners  in 
charge  of  the  Treasury,  and  a  postmaster-general,  whose 
duties  were  similar  to  those  exercised  by  that  officer 
under  the  colonial  regime. 

Congress  was  further  aided  by  the  knowledge  pos- 
sessed by  many  of  its  members  of  the  discussions  that 
had  taken  place  in  the  Constitutional  Convention, 
where,  among  others,  a  plan  had  been  proposed  (August 
20,  1787)  by  Gouverneur  Morris  for  a  council  of  state, 
among  whose  members  he  named  a  Secretary  of  Com- 
merce and  Finance,  and  another  officer  who  was  to  have 
charge  of  agriculture,  manufactures,  and  kindred  mat- 
ters, under  the  title  of  Secretary  of  Domestic  Affairs.1 
There  had  also  been  much  general  discussion  of  the 
subject,  and  many  opinions  expressed.  One  of  the  most 
interesting  of  these  appears  in  a  letter,  written  in  1788 
by  Commodore  John  Paul  Jones,  in  which  he  tells  the 
Marquis  de  Lafayette  that  "had  I  the  power  I  would 
create  at  least  seven  ministries  in  the  primary  organiza- 
1  Documentary  History  of  the  Constitution. 


16  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

tion  of  government  under  the  Constitution.  In  addition 
to  the  four  already  agreed  upon,  I  would  ordain  a 
Ministry  of  Marine,  a  Ministry  of  Home  Affairs  and  a 
General  Post-Office;  and  as  commerce  must  be  our 
great  reliance  it  would  not  be  amiss  to  create  also  as  the 
eighth  a  Ministry  of  Commerce."  1  Congress,  however, 
was  dominated  by  no  such  broad  spirit  as  that  expressed 
by  the  great  sea  captain. 

State  jealousy  of  the  central  power  operated  against 
the  creation  of  any  more  departments  than  were  actually 
necessary;  and  after  much  debate  in  the  House,  where 
the  subject  was  first  introduced  by  Elias  Boudinot. 
a  former  President  of  the  Continental  Congress  and  a 
member  from  New  Jersey,  it  was  decided  that  there 
should  be  but  three  departments.  These  were  to  be 
Foreign  Affairs,  Treasury,  and  War,  each  with  a  secre- 
tary in  charge  of  its  work. 

Although  the  proper  management  of  the  finances  was 
the  most  pressing  need,  and  the  creation  of  a  Treasury 
Department  had  been  proposed  by  Boudinot  as  the  first 
department,  the  difficulties  of  its  organization  proved 
greater  than  those  of  any  other  department,  and  the 
Department  of  State  was  the  first  to  be  created.  On 
July  27, 1789,  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives 
provided  for  its  organization  by  passing  "an  act  for  es- 
tablishing an  Executive  Department  to  be  denominated 
the  Department  of  Foreign  Affairs."  2  This  fundamental 

1  Original  manuscript  in  the  archives  of  the  Congressional  Li- 
brary. 

2  1  U.S.  Stat.  L.  28. 


CREATION  OF  THE  DEPARTMENTS      17 

act  provided  for  an  executive  department  whose  prin- 
cipal officer  should  be  called  the  Secretary  of  Foreign 
Affairs,  and  who  should  perform  and  execute  such  duties 
as  should  from  time  to  time  be  enjoined  on  or  entrusted 
to  him  by  the  President  relative  to  "correspondences, 
commissions,  or  instructions  to  or  with  public  ministers 
or  consuls  from  the  United  States,  or  to  negotiations 
with  public  ministers  from  foreign  States  or  princes,  or 
to  memorials  or  other  applications  from  foreign  public 
ministers  or  other  foreigners,  or  to  such  other  matters 
respecting  foreign  affairs  as  the  President  of  the  United 
States  shall  assign  to  the  said  department." 

The  duties  of  this  department  were  confined  entirely 
to  foreign  relations,  and  closely  approximated  those  of 
the  Secretary  of  the  Department  of  Foreign  Affairs  under 
the  Confederation.  Its  descent  from  the  old  department 
was  indicated  by  the  provision  of  the  act  by  which  the 
Secretary  of  the  new  department  was  given  custody  of 
the  records,  books,  and  papers  in  the  office  of  the  Secre- 
tary who  had  had  charge  of  Foreign  Affairs  under  the 
Confederation.  The  department  did  not  long  retain  its 
character  as  dealing  exclusively  with  foreign  affairs. 
Administrative  functions  of  a  very  diverse  and  hetero- 
geneous nature  were  added  almost  immediately  upon 
the  original  founding  of  the  department,  for  within  two 
months  was  passed  an  act x  providing  for  the  safe- 
keeping by  the  secretary  of  this  department  of  the  acts, 
records,  and  seal  of  the  United  States  and  also  for  the 
publication  and  authentication  under  his  authority  of 
i  September  15, 1789.  1  U.S.  Stat.  L.  68. 


18  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

the  laws  passed  by  Congress.  Thus,  to  the  duties  of  the 
Foreign  Secretary  were  added  duties  analogous  to  those 
of  Keeper  of  the  Great  Seal  of  England.  To  indicate 
this  new  province,  it  was  provided  that  the  department 
should  thereafter  be  denominated  the  Department  of 
State,  and  that  its  principal  officer  should  thereafter  be 
called  the  Secretary  of  State.  The  department,  though 
shorn  of  some  of  its  miscellaneous  functions,  remains  to- 
day substantially  the  same  as  when  it  was  created,  but 
its  organization  has  kept  pace  with  the  growth  that  has 
followed  the  marvelous  expansion  of  the  national  inter- 
ests. The  establishing  act  provided  for  the  secretary, 
one  inferior  officer  to  be  called  the  chief  clerk,  and 
assistant  clerks.  To-day  there  are  three  assistant  secre- 
taries, and  numerous  clerks  and  assistants  of  various 
sorts. 

The  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  takes  rank  immediately 
after  the  Secretary  of  State,  but  the  Department  of  War 
was  the  second  department  in  order  of  creation.  On  the 
7th  of  August,  1789,  was  passed  the  "act  to  establish  an 
Executive  Department  to  be  denominated  the  Depart- 
ment of  War."  x  The  secretary  of  this  department  was 
to  perform  and  execute  such  duties  as  should  be  en- 
trusted to  him  by  the  President  "relative  to  military 
commissions,  or  to  the  land  or  naval  forces,  ships  or 
warlike  stores  of  the  United  States,  or  to  such  other 
matters  respecting  military  or  naval  affairs  as  the  Presi- 
dent of  the  United  States  shall  assign  to  the  said  de- 
partment, or  relative  to  the  granting  of  lands  to  persons 
*  1  U.S.  Stat.  L.  49. 


CREATION  OF  THE  DEPARTMENTS      19 

entitled  thereto,  for  military  services  rendered  to  the 
United  States,  or  relative  to  Indian  affairs." 

As  in  the  case  of  the  State  Department  the  new  De- 
partment of  War  was  named  as  the  depository  of  all 
books  and  records  in  the  office  of  the  Secretary  for  the 
Department  of  War,  established  under  the  Confedera- 
tion of  the  "United  States  in  Congress  assembled."  The 
organization  of  the  department  followed  that  of  the 
Department  of  Foreign  Affairs,  and  it  was  placed  under 
the  charge  of  a  Secretary  of  War. 

The  creation  of  the  Departments  of  State  and  of  War 
was  accomplished  with  comparative  ease,  but  it  was  not 
until  September  2,  1789,  six  weeks  after  the  creation  of 
the  first  department,  that  the  act  was  passed  for  the 
establishment  of  the  Treasury  Department.  The  "An- 
nals" of  Congress1  show  the  diversity  of  opinion  that 
existed  as  to  the  organization  of  the  department  and 
the  opposition  from  certain  quarters  to  the  substitution 
of  a  single  secretary  for  the  board  that  had  directed 
the  Continental  finances.2  The  war  with  England  had 
left  a  great  burden  of  debt  upon  the  young  nation,  and 
its  management  presented  momentous  problems.  The 
Constitution  provided  for  the  collection  of  revenue  from 
various  sources,  but  was  silent  as  to  the  measures  to  be 
employed.  No  aid  of  any  great  value  was  to  be  derived 
from  the  methods  employed  under  the  Confederation, 
for  the  lack  of  power  to  raise  money  had  been  the  fatal 

*  May  19-21,  and  July  23, 1789. 

2  James  Schouler,  A  History  of  the  United  States  under  the  Con- 
stitution, vol.  i,  p.  93. 


20  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

defect  of  that  weak  attempt  at  government.  Further- 
more, the  organization  of  the  Treasury  Department  pre- 
sented internal  difficulties  that  were  totally  absent  in 
the  other  departments,  and  it  is  a  remarkable  commen- 
tary upon  the  ability  of  the  framers  of  the  act  which 
established  the  Treasury  Department  that  it  continues 
to-day  under  the  original  plan,  and  that  in  all  the  history 
of  its  vast  dealings  there  has  occurred  no  important  der- 
eliction of  duty  by  those  in  charge  of  the  nation's  funds. 
Its  organization  is,  in  comparison  with  the  other  de- 
partments, very  complicated.  It  is  sufficient  here  to  note 
that  in  addition  to  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury,  there 
were  named  as  officers  a  Comptroller,  an  Auditor,  a 
Treasurer,  a  Register  and  an  assistant  to  the  Secretary. 
It  was  stated  in  the  act  that  the  Secretary  of  the  Treas- 
ury was  "to  be  deemed  head  of  the  Department."  The 
fact  that  the  duties  of  the  other  officers  were  so  impor- 
tant shows  the  fear  of  Congress  of  putting  too  much 
power  into  the  hands  of  the  Secretary,  and  this  caution 
is  accentuated  by  the  fact  that  of  all  the  officers  above 
enumerated  only  the  assistant  secretary  was  to  be  ap- 
pointed by  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury. 

Washington  was  inaugurated  April  30,  1789,  and  at 
once  proceeded  to  carry  on  the  Government  with  the 
aid  of^the  executive  machinery  that  had  served  the 
United  States  under  the  Confederation.  John  Jay  had 
been  Secretary  of  Foreign  Affairs  under  the  Confedera- 
tion, and  upon  the  establishment  of  that  department 
under  the  Constitution,  he  was  offered  the  new  position. 
He  preferred  rather  to  become  the  Chief  Justice,  but  re- 


CREATION  OF  THE  DEPARTMENTS   21 

tained  his  old  position  at  the  President's  request  until 
March  21,  1790,  when  Jefferson  returned  from  France 
to  assume  his  duties  as  the  first  Secretary  of  State.  On 
September  11, 1789,  Alexander  Hamilton  was  nominated 
by  the  President,  confirmed  by  the  Senate,  and  commis- 
sioned Secretary  of  the  Treasury,  and  in  this  manner, 
just  seven  days  after  the  establishment  of  the  Treasury 
Department,  became  the  first  member  of  the  first  Cab- 
inet under  the  Constitution.  On  the  same  day,  Henry 
Knox,  of  Massachusetts,  was  nominated,  and  on  the  fol- 
lowing day  confirmed,  as  Secretary  of  War.  On  the  25th 
of  September  followed  Jefferson's  nomination  as  Secre- 
tary of  State,  and  with  his  confirmation  the  new  Cabinet 
was  completed,  although  Jay  continued  to  administer  the 
affairs  of  State  for  six  months  longer. 

The  heads  of  these  three  departments  stood  upon  an 
equal  footing  as  heads  of  executive  departments  and 
advisers  to  the  President,  but  there  were  two  other 
officers  of  the  Government,  the  Attorney-General  and 
the  Postmaster-General,  whose  position  was  not  for 
some  time  so  clearly  defined. 

The  Act  of  September  24, 1789, x  which  established  the 
judicial  courts  of  the  United  States,  provided  for  the  ap- 
pointment of  "a  meet  person,  learned  in  the  law,  to  act 
as  Attorney-General  for  the  United  States."  This  officer, 
in  addition  to  his  duties  to  prosecute  and  conduct  all 
suits  in  the  Supreme  Court  in  which  the  United  States 
should  be  concerned,  was  directed  to  give  his  advice  and 
opinion  upon  questions  of  law  "when  required  by  the 
i  1  U.S.  Stat.  L.  73. 


22  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

President  of  the  United  States,  or  when  requested  by 
the  heads  of  any  of  the  departments  touching  any 
matter  that  may  concern  their  departments." 

Commenting  on  this  provision,  Dr.  Learned  x  says: 
"The  portion  of  the  act  devoted  to  the  Attorney- 
General's  place  is  curiously  brief.  This  brevity  suggests 
the  marked  immaturity  of  the  administrative  judicial 
system  of  the  Central  Government.  Indeed,  so  far  as  the 
Central  Government  is  concerned,  the  office  was  an 
innovation,  for  no  such  office  had  been  known  to  the 
Confederation.  On  the  other  hand,  the  English  attor- 
ney-generalship, which  doubtless  furnished  the  men  of 
1789  with  a  model  was  old  and  well  established.  More- 
over, there  had  been  Attorneys-General  in  many  of  the 
colonies."  Although  those  who  drafted  the  Judiciary 
Act  may  have  had  in  mind  the  Attorney-General  of 
England  or  similar  officers  of  the  Colonial  Governments, 
the  Attorney-General  of  the  United  States  from  the  first 
occupied  a  position  quite  unlike  that  held  by  any  of 
these  officers,  and  Dr.  Learned  is  undoubtedly  correct 
in  his  statement,  that  "the  office  was  an  innovation." 
President  Lowell,  of  Harvard,  in  "The  Government  of 
England,"  2  says:  "The  principal  law  officers  of  the 
Crown  are  the  Attorney-General  and  the  Solicitor- 
General.  Their  opinion  on  questions  of  law  may  be 
asked  by  the  Government  and  by  any  department,  al- 
though many  of  the  departments  are  provided  with  per- 
manent legal  counsel  of  their  own  whose  advice  is  suffi- 
cient for  all  ordinary  matters."   He  also  says:  "These 

1  The  President's  Cabinet,  p.  106.  2  Vol.  I,  pp.  132, 133. 


CREATION  OF  THE  DEPARTMENTS      23 

gentlemen  hold  no  judicial  position;  and  curiously- 
enough,  while  a  part  of  the  Ministry,  are  never  in  the 
Cabinet."  Mr.  Monroe,  while  Secretary  of  State  in 
1817,  wrote:  "The  Attorney- General  has  been  always, 
since  the  adoption  of  our  Government,  a  member  of  the 
Executive  Council,  or  Cabinet.  His  duties  in  attending 
the  Cabinet  are  equal  to  those  of  any  other  members."  1 

The  statute  which  created  the  office  merely  indicated 
in  the  most  meager  terms  the  duties  of  the  Attorney- 
General,  and  it  was  not  till  1870  that  the  Department  of 
Justice  was  created.  The  office  has  gradually  developed 
and  its  duties  become  defined  as  the  Federal  Govern- 
ment has  itself  grown;  but  by  virtue  of  his  advisory 
capacity,  the  Attorney-General  has  been  considered  a 
member  of  the  Cabinet  since  the  appointment  of  Ed- 
mund Randolph,  the  first  incumbent  of  the  office. 

The  first  Cabinet  was  therefore  made  up  of  the 
Secretaries  of  the  three  departments,  and  the  Attorney- 
General,  who  was  himself  not  the  head  of  a  department, 
and  therefore  not  one  of  the  constitutional  advisers  of 
the  President  referred  to  in  the  clause  providing  for  the 
furnishing  of  opinions  to  the  President.  He  was  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Cabinet  by  reason  of  the  advisory  position 
provided  by  the  Act  of  Congress  that  created  his  office. 
The  fifth  of  the  executive  officers  of  the  Government 
occupied  a  position  exactly  opposite  to  that  of  the  At- 
torney-General. The  Postmaster-General  was  for  many 
years  head  of  a  department  that  performed  a  most  im- 
portant function  of  government  administration,  but  it 
1  14th  Cong.,  2d  Sess.  (1816-17),  Annals,  p.  699. 


24  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

was  not  till  1829  that  the  head  of  the  Department  of  the 
Post-Office  was  accorded  a  Cabinet  position. 

The  Post-Office  Department  has  the  longest  record  of 
any  of  the  executive  departments  of  the  Government. 
In  July,  1775,  nearly  a  year  before  the  Declaration  of 
Independence,  a  general  post-office  was  created  and 
Franklin  chosen  Postmaster-General.  The  Articles  of 
Confederation  provided  for  the  continuance  of  this  de- 
partment, and  on  September  22, 1789,  the  First  Congress 
passed  an  "Act  for  the  temporary  establishment  of  the 
Post-Office."  l 

This  act  provided  for  the  appointment  of  a  Post- 
master-General whose  powers  should  be  the  same  "as 
they  last  were  under  the  resolutions  and  ordinances  of 
the  late  Congress."  This  act  was  to  continue  in  force  for 
one  year,  and  was  continued  in  1790,  and  again  in  1791. 
In  1792  a  more  comprehensive  act  was  passed,  and  in 
1794  the  present  department  was  created.  The  work  of 
the  department  was  of  a  purely  routine  character,  and  in 
the  beginning  the  Postmaster-General  was  considered 
unimportant  as  compared  with  the  heads  of  the  State, 
Treasury,  and  War  Departments.  In  1829,  however, 
with  nearly  eight  thousand  deputy  postmasters  under 
his  control,  and  consequently  with  more  patronage  than 
that  of  the  head  of  any  other  department,  the  Post- 
master-General could  no  longer  be  treated  as  of  sub- 
ordinate rank,  and  President  Jackson  invited  Post- 
master-General Barry  to  enter  the  Cabinet  as  one  of  his 
advisers. 

»  1  U.S.  Stat.  L.  70. 


CREATION  OF  THE  DEPARTMENTS  25 

When  the  First  Congress  closed  its  work,  it  had  pro- 
vided for  the  immediate  executive  needs  of  the  govern- 
ment administration,  and  the  changes  that  thereafter 
occurred  in  the  existing  departments,  and  the  creation 
of  new  departments  came  gradually  as  the  natural  re- 
sults of  experience  and  of  enlarged  and  more  varied 
administrative  demands. 

The  first  evidence  of  the  enlarged  executive  require- 
ments of  the  nation  was  the  division  of  the  province  of 
the  War  Department.  During  the  early  years  of  the 
Republic  there  had  been  constant  difficulties  with  Eng- 
lish aggression  on  the  seas,  and  in  1798  the  relations  with 
France  had  come  to  such  a  state  that  war  with  that 
country  seemed  unavoidable.  The  natural  outcome  of 
these  conditions  was  increased  naval  activity,  and  on 
April  30, 1798,  a  new  division  of  the  executive  adminis- 
tration was  created  under  the  name  of  the  "  Department 
of  the  Navy."  x  The  organization  of  this  department 
followed  the  prevailing  type  as  exemplified  by  the  De- 
partment of  State,  and  at  its  head  was  placed  a  Secre- 
tary of  the  Navy.  His  duties,  as  set  forth  in  the  funda- 
mental act,  were  to  "execute  such  orders  as  he  shall 
receive  from  the  President  of  the  United  States,  relative 
to  the  procurement  of  naval  stores  and  materials  and  the 
construction,  armament,  equipment,  and  employment  of 
vessels  of  war,  as  well  as  other  matters  connected  with 
the  naval  establishment  of  the  United  States."  The  act 
concluded  with  the  natural  corollary  to  the  creation 
of  the  department  that  the  new  Secretary  was  to  take 
»  1  U.S.  Stat.  L.  553. 


26  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

possession  of  the  books  and  records  appertaining  to  his 
department,  which  were  then  deposited  in  the  office  of 
the  "Secretary  at  War." 

The  first  member  of  the  Cabinet  to  take  his  place  as 
representative  of  the  new  department  was  Benjamin 
Stoddert,  of  Maryland,  who  was  appointed  by  President 
Adams,  upon  the  refusal  to  serve  of  George  Cabot,  of 
Massachusetts,  to  whom  the  secretaryship  was  first 
offered.  It  is  recorded  of  Secretary  Stoddert  that  he  was 
"a  Georgetown  merchant,  without  political  antecedents, 
who  proved  himself  an  efficient  officer  and  the  most 
constant  member  of  President  Adams's  Cabinet." 

1  Schouler,  vol.  I,  p.  404. 


CHAPTER  III 

DEVELOPMENT  OF  THE  EXECUTIVE  DEPARTMENTS 
AND  THE  CABINET 

The  creation  of  the  Navy  Department  was  made 
necessary  by  the  development  in  importance  of  an 
existing  part  of  the  administrative  work  of  the  Execu- 
tive, but  the  establishment  of  the  next  department  was 
necessitated  by  the  assumption  of  new  burdens  by  the 
Government,  and  by  an  enlargement  of  the  sphere  of 
the  national  activity.  The  creation  of  the  Department 
of  the  Interior  and  of  the  three  departments  that  have 
since  been  added  shows  in  a  marked  degree  the  increased 
power  of  the  Executive  of  the  nation.  The  acquisition 
of  vast  territories  wrested  from  Mexico,  in  addition 
to  those  acquired  by  peaceful  means,  imposed  greater 
responsibilities  upon  the  President,  while  the  devel- 
opment of  the  country  increased  greatly  the  various 
miscellaneous  duties  that  had  in  the  early  days  been 
performed  by  the  existing  departments  as  unimportant 
incidents. 

As  indicated  by  the  plans  for  the  departments  sub- 
mitted to  the  Constitutional  Convention,  the  idea  of  a 
general  home  department  was  discussed  at  the  very 
foundation  of  the  Government,  but  postponed  as  un- 
necessary under  the  conditions  that  then  existed.  The 
demand  for  such  a  division  of  the  executive  administra- 
tion became  imperative  in  the  days  when  the  Wilmot 


28  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

Proviso  was  concentrating  all  attention  on  internal 
affairs,  and  at  a  time  when  no  foreign  complications  di- 
verted discussion  from  the  great  questions  that  underlay 
the  Missouri  Compromise. 

In  February,  1849,  Representative  Vinton,  a  member 
of  the  Ways  and  Means  Committee,  reported  a  bill  in 
the  House  that  had  been  drafted  by  Robert  J.  Walker, 
President  Polk's  powerful  Secretary  of  the  Treasury. 
The  bill  was  passed  in  the  House  by  a  strong  non-parti- 
san vote,  and  in  the  last  days  of  the  session  the  Senate 
concurred  in  the  measure.1  On  March  3,  1849,  this  bill 
became  a  law  under  a  title  which  is  indicative  of  its 
character  as  a  general  measure  of  department  reforma- 
tion. It  is  called  "An  act  to  establish  the  Home  De- 
partment, and  to  provide  for  the  Treasury  Department 
an  Assistant  Secretary  of  the  Treasury,  and  a  Commis- 
sioner of  the  Customs."  It  differs  materially  in  some  of 
its  provisions  from  the  acts  by  which  the  existing  de- 
partments had  been  created  and  for  that  reason  merits 
a  more  careful  examination.  The  creative  portion  of  the 
act  provided  "  that  from  and  after  the  passage  of  this 
act  there  shall  be  created  a  new  executive  department  of 
the  Government  of  the  United  States,  to  be  called  the 
Department  of  the  Interior;  the  head  of  which  de- 
partment shall  be  appointed  by  the  President  of  the 
United  States  by  and  with  the  advice  and  consent  of  the 
Senate,  who  shall  hold  his  office  by  the  same  tenure,  and 
receive  the  same  salary,  as  the  Secretaries  of  the  other 
executive  departments,  and  who  shall  perform  the  duties 
1  Schouler,  vol.  V,  p.  121. 


DEVELOPMENT   OF   THE   DEPARTMENTS    29 

assigned  him  by  this  act."  The  significant  portions  of 
this  part  of  the  act  are  those  that  provide  that  the 
Senate  shall  concur  in  the  appointment  and  the  definite 
assignment  of  duties  by  Congress  to  the  new  Secretary. 
In  the  previous  acts  establishing  or  modifying  depart- 
ments, it  had  been  stated  merely  that  the  head  of  the 
department  was  to  be  appointed  by  the  President  and 
that  he  should  perform  those  duties  relative  to  certain 
named  matters  assigned  him  by  the  President. 

It  was  intimated  in  the  Constitution  that  the  heads  of 
the  departments  should  be  appointed  by  and  with  the 
consent  of  the  Senate,1  and  this  had  been  the  practice 
from  the  time  of  the  appointment  of  the  first  Secretary; 
but  by  this  act,  for  the  first  time,  this  practice  was  noted 
in  the  establishment  of  a  department.  The  act  in  its 
further  provisions  showed  the  clearer  understanding 
that  had  been  gained  of  the  position  of  the  departments. 

Among  the  heterogeneous  duties  assigned  to  the  new 
Secretary  were  the  supervision  of  the  office  of  the  Com- 
missioner of  Patents,  formerly  exercised  by  the  Secre- 
tary of  State,  and  the  supervision  of  the  General  Land 
Office  and  of  the  accounts  of  the  marshals,  clerks,  and 
other  officers  of  the  United  States  Courts,  formerly  the 
province  of  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury.  The  War 
Department  lost  control  over  Indian  affairs,  and  the 
Navy  Department  was  required  to  cede  its  supervision 
of  pensions  to  the  new  Secretary.  In  addition  to  these 
duties  the  control  of  the  census  affairs  was  transferred 
from  the  State  Department,  while  such  miscellaneous 
1  Art.  II,  sec.  2,  clause  2. 


30  THE   FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

matters  were  added  as  the  supervision  of  the  mines 
owned  by  the  United  States  and  the  power  before  exer- 
cised by  the  President  over  the  commissioners  of  public 
buildings,  and  over  the  penitentiary  of  the  District  of 
Columbia.  The  first  Secretary  of  the  new  department, 
Thomas  Ewing,  of  Ohio,  was  assuredly  in  charge  of  an 
amount  of  administrative  work  as  miscellaneous  as  it 
was  important  and  far-reaching  in  its  scope. 

Judged  by  the  nature  of  the  duties  originally  assigned 
to  them,  as  well  as  the  time  of  their  creation,  the  de- 
partments may  be  said  to  be  capable  of  division  into 
two  classes.  The  original  departments,  with  which  the 
Department  of  the  Navy  must  be  classed,  were  all 
formed  during  the  infancy  of  the  Republic,  and  their 
development  has  been  but  an  amplification  under  wider 
and  better  laws  of  the  work  of  the  Federal  Government. 
The  Departments  of  the  Interior  and  of  Agriculture,  and 
the  still  new  Departments  of  Commerce  and  of  Labor, 
belong  to  the  powerful  Government  of  a  strongly  cen- 
tralized nation,  and  in  their  work  are  exponents  of  the 
last  half  of  the  national  life,  rather  than  of  the  days  of 
early  struggle  and  development,  when  state  sovereignty 
was  the  prevailing  conception  and  the  Union  savored 
more  of  a  strong  federation  of  States  than  of  such  a 
Union  as  emerged  from  the  great  constitutional  struggle 
that  caused  the  Civil  War.  The  early  departments  min- 
istered to  the  bare  necessities  of  the  Government.  The 
later  departments  foster  the  more  general  welfare  of  the 
nation. 

The  Department  of  Agriculture  was  created  by  Act 


DEVELOPMENT  OF  THE  DEPARTMENTS     31 

of  May  15, 1862,  for  a  purpose  that  in  1789  would  have 
been  deemed  entirely  outside  the  province  of  the  func- 
tions of  the  National  Government,  —  to  diffuse  among 
the  people  of  the  United  States  useful  information  on 
subjects  connected  with  agriculture  in  its  most  general 
and  comprehensive  meaning. 

Although  designated  a  department,  it  was  not  classed 
with  the  high  executive  departments  of  the  Government. 
It  was  rather  an  independent  bureau,  and  at  its  head 
was  placed  not  a  Secretary,  but  merely  a  Commissioner. 
It  was  not  till  February  9,  1889,  that  this  department 
was  placed  upon  an  equal  footing  with  what  may  be 
termed  the  Cabinet  Departments.  By  the  act  of  that 
date, *  Congress  made  it  one  of  the  executive  departments 
and  placed  it  in  charge  of  a  Secretary  of  Agriculture. 
Its  duties  were  enlarged,  and  its  first  head,  Norman  J. 
Colman,  of  Missouri,  became  a  member  of  President 
Cleveland's  Cabinet  on  February  13,  1889.  In  this 
manner  the  industries  of  the  country,  a  subject  seem- 
ingly non-executive,  were  for  the  first  time  accorded  a 
representative  in  the  Council  of  the  Chief  Executive, 
and  a  new  theory  was  definitely  added  to  that  unwritten 
part  of  the  Constitution  that  has  been  slowly  developing 
since  the  formation  of  the  Union. 

The  history  of  the  erection  of  the  Department  of 
Commerce  and  Labor  shows  the  same  development. 
The  national  importance  of  the  labor  interests  of  the 
country  received  recognition  in  the  establishment  of  the 
Bureau  of  Labor  under  the  act  of  Congress  approved 
»  25  U.S.  Stat.  L.  659. 


32  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

June  27,  1884,  which  occupied  a  position  very  similar  to 
that  of  the  Department  of  Agriculture  at  the  time  of  its 
first  establishment.  As  far  as  the  Government  was  con- 
cerned, the  commercial  and  manufacturing  interests  of 
the  country  were,  at  that  time,  left  to  the  casual  atten- 
tion of  various  offices  of  the  several  departments.  With 
the  great  increase  of  the  industries  of  the  nation  the 
need  of  more  definite  government  supervision  of  indus- 
trial matters  grew  to  be  generally  recognized.  Many 
petitions  on  the  subject  were  made  to  Congress,  various 
commercial  conventions  presented  memorials  on  the 
same  theme,  and  the  subject  has  been  referred  to  in 
the  more  recent  political  platforms  and  messages  of  the 
Presidents.  The  arguments  offered  for  a  Department  of 
Commerce  were  based  on  the  fact  noted  by  John  Paul 
Jones  in  1788,  that  the  United  States  was  a  distinctly 
commercial  and  industrial  nation.  The  creation  of  the 
Department  of  Agriculture  was  cited  as  a  precedent, 
and  the  fact  was  set  forth  that  the  Census  Report  for 
the  year  ending  June  1,  1900,  showed  that  the  aggre- 
gate value  of  the  products  of  the  manufacturing  plants 
of  the  United  States  for  that  year  was  about  four  times 
the  aggregate  value  of  all  the  products  of  agriculture  for 
the  same  period.  It  was  argued  on  these  premises  that 
there  existed  all  and  as  strong  reasons  for  the  super- 
vision of  commerce  by  the  Government,  as  those  that 
had  led  to  the  establishment  of  the  Department  of 
Agriculture,  and,  as  a  result  of  the  representations  be- 
fore congressional  committees  and  the  general  public 
demand,  a  bill  was  originated  in  the  Senate,  passed  in 


DEVELOPMENT  OF  THE  DEPARTMENTS     33 

the  House,  and  on  February  14,  1903,  approved  by  the 
President,  which  recognized  and  provided  for  the  needs 
of  labor  and  of  commerce.  Under  the  provisions  of  this 
act 1  a  new  department  was  added  to  the  executive  ad- 
ministration. On  February  16,  1903,  the  appointment 
of  George  B.  Cortelyou,  of  New  York,  was  confirmed  by 
the  Senate,  and  two  days  later  the  Secretary  of  Com- 
merce and  Labor,  the  ninth  member  of  the  Cabinet, 
qualified  as  head  of  the  ninth  of  the  executive  depart- 
ments of  the  Government.2  The  tenth  and  last  of  the 
executive  departments  was  created  by  act  approved 
March  4,  1913.  By  this  act  the  new  member  of  the 
Cabinet  was  charged  with  the  duty  of  fostering  the 
welfare  of  the  wage-earners  of  the  United  States,  im- 
proving their  working  conditions  and  advancing  their 
opportunities  for  profitable  employment;  he  is  enabled 
to  perform  the  duties  of  mediator  and  to  appoint  com- 
missioners of  conciliation  in  labor  disputes  whenever  in 
his  judgment  the  interests  of  industrial  peace  may  re- 
quire it  to  be  done.  From  the  old  Department  of  Com- 
merce and  Labor,  the  Bureau  of  Immigration  and  other 
matters  were  taken  and  given  to  the  new  department. 
On  March  5,  1913,  William  Bauchop  Wilson,  of  Penn- 
sylvania, became  the  first  Secretary  of  Labor. 

The  tendency  of  the  original  creation  of  the  admin- 
istrative machinery  was  to  limit  the  work  of  the  exec- 
utive departments  as  well  as  their  number  to  the  bare 

1  32  U.S.  Stat.  L.  825. 

2  Department  of  Commerce  and  Labor,  Organization  and  Law 
(1904). 


34  THE   FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

necessities  of  the  Government.  The  Department  of 
Foreign  Affairs  was  made  to  do  double  duty  under  the 
name  of  the  Department  of  State,  but  the  old  conception 
of  the  Union  has  changed,  and  with  this  change,  the  old 
restrictive  idea  has  ceased  to  guide  the  policies  of  the 
nation.  Expansion  is  the  underlying  theory  of  present 
internal  administration,  as  well  as  of  foreign  affairs,  and 
it  is  probable  that  within  a  few  years  the  ever-widening 
sphere  of  executive  administration  will  demand  further 
enlargement  of  the  means  of  doing  the  increased  busi- 
ness of  the  Government.  It  is  to  be  expected  that  the 
history  of  the  Departments  of  Agriculture,  of  Commerce., 
and  of  Labor,  foreshadowed  in  a  measure  by  that  of  the 
Post-Office  Department,  will  be  repeated,  and  that  in 
the  near  future  divisions  which  now  exist  as  independ- 
ent bureaus  or  commissions  will  follow  the  course  of 
these  departments  and  in  their  turn  become  parts  of  the 
executive  administration,  equal  in  rank  to  those  that 
were  established  by  the  first  Congress  that  assembled 
under  the  Constitution.  It  is  not  improbable  that  we 
shall  some  day  have  a  Department  of  Education  de- 
veloped from  the  Bureau  of  Education,  now  in  the 
Department  of  the  Interior,  and  a  Department  of  Trans- 
portation, already  foreshadowed,  perhaps,  by  the  Inter- 
state Commerce  Commission. 

I  have  thus  briefly  sketched  the  creation  and  develop- 
ment of  the  executive  departments  and  the  Cabinet.  It 
is  unnecessary  to  go  more  fully  into  the  history  of  each 
of  the  departments,  but  it  will  be  of  value  for  us  to  ex- 
amine more  carefully  the  development  of  the  Depart- 


DEVELOPMENT  OF  THE  DEPARTMENTS    35 

merit  of  Justice,  which  is  the  most  striking  example  of 
the  development  of  a  great  executive  department  from 
extremely  small  beginnings,  and  from  what  I  have  to 
say  about  the  Department  of  Justice  one  may  readily 
understand  the  similar  processes  of  development  which 
have  taken  place  in  the  other  departments. 

It  is  probable  that  the  character  of  the  early  Attor- 
neys-General and  their  close  relation  to  the  Presidents 
under  whom  they  served  had  much  to  do  with  the  defin- 
ing of  the  duties  of  the  office.  Randolph  had  been  the 
first  Attorney-General  of  the  State  of  Virginia  under  its 
new  Constitution  of  1776.  For  years  he  had  been  on 
terms  of  intimate  friendship  with  Washington,  and  be- 
cause of  his  qualifications  and  his  personal  relation  it 
was  natural  that  Washington  should  consider  him  a 
member  of  his  Executive  Council  or  Cabinet. 

Randolph  served  as  Attorney-General  until  January  2, 
1794,  when  he  became  Secretary  of  State.  In  the  early 
days  of  the  Administration  it  was  definitely  settled  that 
the  President  must  look  to  his  Attorney-General  for 
legal  advice.  In  1793  the  President  asked  the  advice  of 
the  federal  judges  concerning  certain  questions  arising 
under  the  treaties  with  France.  "  It  was,  perhaps,  for- 
tunate for  the  judges  and  their  successors,"  writes  the 
late  Professor  James  Bradley  Thayer,  "that  the  ques- 
tions then  proposed  came  in  so  formidable  a  shape  as 
they  did.  There  were  twenty-nine  of  them,  and  they  fill 
three  large  octavo  pages.  Had  they  been  brief  and  easily 
answered,  the  court  might  not  improbably  have  slipped 
into  the  adoption  of  a  precedent  that  would  have  en- 


36  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

grafted  the  English  usage  upon  our  national  system." 
The  judges  refused  to  furnish  the  advice  asked  by  the 
President.  Commenting  on  this,  Professor  Thayer  adds, 
"As  it  is,  .  .  .  while  the  President  may  require  the  writ- 
ten opinion  of  his  Cabinet,  he  does  not  possess  a  like  au- 
thority in  regard  to  the  judicial  department."  l  So,  at 
the  outset,  it  was  settled  that  the  Attorney-General  was 
the  sole  legal  adviser  of  the  President.  It  was  soon  de- 
cided that,  although  he  was  the  chief  law  officer  of  the 
Government,  he  was  not  the  legal  adviser  of  Congress. 

Few  men  did  more  to  define  the  duties  of  the  Attor- 
ney-General than  William  Wirt,  of  Maryland  and  Vir- 
ginia, who  accepted  the  office  in  October,  1817.  In 
January,  1820,  he  declined  to  give  to  the  House  a  legal 
opinion  demanded  of  him,  and  from  that  time  it  has  been 
settled  that  Congress  cannot  demand  legal  opinions  from 
the  Attorney-General.  In  refusing  to  act  as  legal  adviser 
to  Congress,  Wirt  said:  "It  is  true  that  in  this  case,  I 
should  have  the  sanction  of  the  House  .  .  .  and  it  is 
not  less  true  that  my  respect  for  the  House  impels  me 
strongly  to  obey  the  order.  The  precedent,  however, 
would  not  be  less  dangerous  on  account  of  the  purity  of 
the  motives  in  which  it  originated.  I  may  be  wrong  in 
my  view  of  the  subject;  the  order  may  be  sanctioned  by 
former  precedents;  but  my  predecessors  in  office  have 
left  nothing  for  my  guidance."  2 

Wirt  also  further  limited  the  duties  of  his  office  when 
on  April  3, 1820,  he  wrote  to  the  Secretary  of  the  Navy, 

1  Legal  Essays,  pp.  53,  54,  note.   (1908.) 

2  16th  Cong.,  1st  Sess.,  vol.  5,  House  Documents,  no.  68,  p.  2. 


DEVELOPMENT  OF  THE  DEPARTMENTS    37 

"As  my  official  duty  is  confined  to  the  giving  my  opinion 
on  questions  of  law,  I  consider  myself  as  having  nothing 
to  do  with  the  settlement  of  controverted  questions  of 
fact." 

The  reorganization  of  the  office  of  the  Attorney- 
General  was  from  time  to  time  subject  to  careful  con- 
sideration. President  Jackson,  in  a  message  to  Congress, 
called  attention  to  the  need  of  reorganizing  the  Attor- 
ney-General's office.  He  believed  that  the  salary  of  this 
officer  should  be  increased,  that  he  should  be  given 
proper  quarters  for  his  work  and  proper  assistance,  and 
should  be  charged  with  the  general  superintendence  of 
the  Government's  legal  matters.1  It  was  also  proposed 
that  the  Attorney-General  should  remain  permanently 
in  Washington,  and  not  engage  in  private  practice.  A 
bill  based  upon  these  suggestions  failed  to  pass  Congress, 
but  in  1830  the  office  of  Solicitor  of  the  Treasury  was 
created,  and  the  salary  of  the  Attorney-General  was 
raised  to  $4000,  at  which  amount  it  remained  until  1853. 
President  Polk  agreed  with  Jackson  in  his  desire  to  in- 
crease the  duties  and  responsibilities  of  the  Attorney- 
General,  but  it  was  not  until  Cushing  became  Attorney- 
General  that  the  office  began  to  assume  the  form  of  a 
regular  government  department.  He  made  certain  per- 
tinent suggestions  for  the  reorganization  of  the  depart- 
ment,2 and  it  has  been  said  of  him  that  he  "raised 
the  office  of  Attorney-General  and  organized  it  to  be 

1  A  Compilation  of  the  Messages  and  Papers  of  the  Presidents,  by 
James  D.  Richardson,  vol.  II,  pp.  314-15. 

2  Opinions  of  the  Attorney-General,  vol.  VI,  pp.  326-55. 


38  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

in  truth  and  in  fact  a  department  of  Government."1 
Cushing  devoted  considerable  thought  to  the  relation  of 
the  President  to  the  executive  departments.2 

The  Civil  War  had  greatly  added  to  the  business  of 
the  Department  of  Justice.  In  1861  the  department 
had  grown  to  such  an  extent  that  there  were  besides 
the  Attorney-General  an  Assistant  Attorney-General,  a 
Solicitor  of  the  Court  of  Claims,  and  the  Solicitor  of  the 
Treasury.  From  1861  the  district  attorneys  were  under 
the  direction  of  the  Attorney-General.3  The  great  vol- 
ume of  law  business  arising  from  the  Civil  War  was 
necessarily  performed  by  special  counsel,  who  were  em- 
ployed at  a  great  expense.  It  is  said  that  between  the 
years  1860  and  1870  the  Government  was  obliged  to  pay 
about  $100,000  a  year  for  extra  counsel.  To  this  fact,  as 
much  as  to  any  other,  is  probably  due  the  reorganization 
of  the  office  of  the  Attorney-General  and  its  erection  into 
the  Department  of  Justice  during  the  Administration  of 
President  Grant  in  1870.  The  purpose  of  this  act  was  to 
create  for  the  Federal  Government  a  comprehensive  and 
capable  law  department.  And  from  that  time  to  the 
present  Administration,  the  various  law  matters  of  the 
Government  have  become  more  and  more  closely  super- 
vised by  the  Attorney-General.  The  power  of  the  de- 
partment has  greatly  increased  in  the  last  few  years. 
The  addition  and  growth  of  the  Bureau  of  Investiga- 
tion, the  special  agents  of  which,  throughout  the  United 

1  Memorial  of  Caleb  Cushing  (Newburyport,  1879),  p.  169. 

2  Opinions  of  the  Attorney-General,  vol.  vil,  pp.  453-82. 

3  Easby  Smith,  The  Department  of  Justice,  pp.  16,  28-30. 


DEVELOPMENT  OF  THE  DEPARTMENTS     39 

States,  gather  information  as  to  violations  of  the  law,  the 
assumption  of  control  over  the  attorneys  of  the  Inter- 
state Commerce  Commission,  and  the  closer  subordina- 
tion of  the  district  attorneys  which  took  place  under  the 
administration  of  Attorney-General  Wickersham,  have 
attended  the  additional  power  conferred  by  the  pure- 
food  laws,  white-slave  laws,  etc.,  and  the  broadened 
scope  of  such  laws  as  section  215,  Penal  Code,  which 
in  1909  was  expanded  to  include,  as  a  violation  of  the 
privileges  of  the  United  States  mail,  the  mailing  of  any 
letter  in  pursuance  of  a  scheme  to  defraud.  Previous  to 
1909  only  schemes  which  contemplated  the  use  of  the 
mails  in  their  inception  came  under  the  federal  law. 
Under  the  present  law  the  department  has  charge  of  all 
manner  of  frauds,  for  few  schemes  to  defraud  exist  in 
which  the  mails  are  not  used  to  some  extent,  and  any  use 
of  the  mails  to  further  the  fraud  is  sufficient  to  give  rise 
to  federal  prosecution.  This  change  in  the  law  is  one 
of  the  most  noticeable  additions  to  the  power  of  the 
Federal  Government  for  the  protection  of  the  people. 
Under  it  the  vendors  of  "fake"  or  unfairly  inflated 
mining  and  other  corporation  stocks,  are  in  danger  of 
federal  penitentiaries,  and  it  covers  a  great  multitude 
of  cases.  A  most  striking  example  of  its  broad  scope  is 
found  in  a  case  I  once  prosecuted  as  United  States 
Attorney.  'The  defendant,  who  pleaded  guilty  and  was 
sentenced  to  a  term  in  the  Atlanta  Penitentiary,  al- 
though already  married,  posed  as  a  bachelor,  won  the 
heart  of  a  lady  of  some  wealth  in  a  rural  community, 
and  then,  under  the  plea  of  providing  himself  a  career 


40  THE   FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

for  the  happiness  of  his  betrothed,  defrauded  her  of 
many  thousand  dollars.  He  told  the  lady  he  was  using 
the  money  to  pay  his  expenses  in  a  prominent  medical 
school,  whereas,  "in  truth  and  in  fact,"  as  the  indictment 
read,  he  used  the  poor  lady's  funds  for  the  support  of  his 
wife  and  family,  and  for  the  entertainment  of  sundry 
other  ladies  to  whom  his  wife  would  most  certainly  have 
objected  had  she  known  of  his  relations  with  them.  The 
laws  for  the  protection  of  the  mails  have  thus  given  the 
Federal  Government  jurisdiction  over  matters  which 
many  of  the  framers  of  the  Constitution  would  have 
considered  as  especially  without  the  purview  of  the 
Federal  Government. 


CHAPTER  IV 

STATUS    OF    THE    HEADS    OF    THE    EXECUTIVE    DEPART- 
MENTS COLLECTIVELY,  AS  AN  ADVISORY 
COUNCIL  OR  CABINET 

Before  considering  the  organization  and  work  of 
the  departments  whose  gradual  development  has  been 
traced,  it  will  be  instructive  to  consider  the  status  of  the 
heads  of  the  departments,  collectively  as  a  Cabinet,  and 
individually  as  parts  of  the  executive  machinery.  It  is 
essential  to  a  comprehension  of  the  work  of  the  depart- 
ments to  understand  the  essential  laws  that  define  or 
indicate  the  relations  that  exist  between  the  President, 
the  Congress,  and  the  nation  at  large.  In  the  same 
gradual  and  tentative  manner  in  which  the  executive 
administration  has  been  created,  the  position  of  the 
Cabinet  has  been  defined,  and  the  rules  that  govern  the 
various  departments  have  been  evolved. 

Lord  Bryce,  the  great  authority  on  American  Gov- 
ernment, assures  us  that  there  is  in  the  Government  of 
the  United  States  no  such  thing  as  a  Cabinet  in  the 
English  sense  of  the  term,1  nor  is  there  in  the  United 
States  a  body  that  takes  the  position  of  the  boards  of 
responsible  ministers  that  in  Continental  Governments 
bear  the  name  of  a  Cabinet.  The  English  Cabinet  is 
practically  a  committee  of  the  sovereign,  the  Parlia- 
ment. From  this  supreme  body  it  derives  its  existence, 
1  The  American  Commonwealth,  vol.  I,  p.  86. 


42  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

and  its  power  and  duration  depend  solely  upon  the  sup- 
port that  its  creator  gives  it.  The  Ministry  of  the  French 
Government  occupies  a  somewhat  similar  position.  Be- 
cause of  its  relation  to  the  legislative  body  the  English 
Cabinet  is  properly  called,  and  in  fact  is,  the  "  Govern- 
ment." 

The  management  of  the  affairs  of  the  allied  colonies, 
and  of  the  later  association  of  States  under  the  Articles 
of  Confederation,  presented  a  mode  of  government  in 
many  ways  like  that  of  England  to-day,  and  in  the  de- 
bates upon  the  various  plans  considered  by  the  Con- 
stitutional Convention,  there  appeared  many  advocates 
for  the  adoption  of  such  a  system  for  the  new  American 
nation.  The  Constitution,  however,  provides  for  noth- 
ing in  the  nature  of  a  Cabinet  nor  is  such  a  body  recog- 
nized by  the  laws;  yet  for  want  of  a  better  term  the  col- 
lective heads  of  the  various  executive  departments  have 
from  the  days  of  Washington  been  popularly  styled 
"the  Cabinet." 

It  has  been  said  that  the  English  Cabinet  is  the  exec- 
utive agent  of  the  Commons.  The  Constitution  of  the 
United  States  vests  the  executive  function  exclusively 
in  the  President;  and  as  in  England  the  Cabinet  is  the 
executive  agent  of  the  supreme  power  that  combines  all 
functions,  so  in  America,  the  heads  of  the  departments 
are  the  agents  of  the  supreme  executive  power,  the 
President.  The  English  Cabinet  formulates  the  policies 
of  the  Government,  but  while  the  American  Cabinet 
participates  in  the  formation  of  executive  policies,  it 
does  so  merely  as  an  advisory  body,  whose  advice  need 


HEADS  OF  DEPARTMENTS  AS  CABINET    43 

not  be  heeded  by  the  President.  Its  sole  legal  power  lies 
in  the  individual  position  of  its  members  as  constitu- 
tional officers  of  the  United  States  and  executive  agents 
of  the  President.  The  records  of  its  meetings  have  no 
more  force  than  those  of  any  voluntary  association,  and 
although  it  plays  a  part  in  the  national  affairs  that  is 
ever  assuming  more  importance,  it  has  at  law  no  recog- 
nized status  of  any  sort. 

The  position  of  the  members  of  the  Cabinet  as  exec- 
utive advisers  arises  from  their  special  knowledge  of 
their  own  departments,  and  from  their  general  knowl- 
edge as  experienced  men  of  affairs.  Although  the  Con- 
stitution provides  that  the  President  may  require  the 
opinions  of  the  heads  of  the  executive  departments,  it 
was  not  expected  that  he  should  do  more  than  ask  their 
opinions  as  individuals.  Woodburn1  states  that  it  was 
not  contemplated  "that  he  should  assemble  them  to- 
gether for  consultation  and  advice  on  the  general  policy 
of  the  administration."  He  then  says,  "He  might  follow 
this  advice  or  not  as  he  chose:  he  could  proceed  with 
the  most  important  political  matters  without  asking  it, 
as  John  Adams  did  in  our  French  relations  in  1800,  and 
Jefferson  in  the  Louisiana  Treaty  in  1803,  and  in  the 
Monroe-Pinkney  Treaty  of  1806." 

The  advisory  position  of  the  Cabinet  has  varied  un- 
der different  Administrations.  Washington  usually  con- 
sulted his  Cabinet  members  individually.  During  the 
Administration  of  Adams  the  Cabinet  took  a  more 
definite  position,  and  its  members  asserted  advisory 
x  The  American  Republic  and  its  Government,  p.  190. 


44  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

rights.  Jefferson's  use  of  his  Cabinet  is  interesting. 
"Where  a  question  occurred  of  sufficient  magnitude  to 
require  the  opinions  of  all  the  heads  of  departments,  he 
called  them  together,  had  the  subject  discussed,  and  a 
vote  taken,  in  which  he  counted  himself  as  but  one.  But 
he  always  seems  to  have  considered  that  he  had  the 
power  to  decide  against  the  opinion  of  his  Cabinet.  .  . . 
When  there  were  differences  of  opinion,  he  aimed  to  pro- 
duce a  unanimous  result  by  discussion,  and  almost  al- 
ways succeeded.  But  he  admits  that  this  practice  made 
the  Executive,  in  fact,  a  directory."  x  Buchanan  had 
great  difficulty  in  the  management  of  his  Cabinet  be- 
cause of  his  weakness  of  character,  but  Lincoln  always 
dominated  his  Secretaries.  The  Emancipation  Procla- 
mation was  prepared  without  their  advice,  and  merely 
submitted  to  them  for  suggestion.2  Andrew  Johnson's 
difficulties  with  Congress  led  to  serious  encroachments 
by  that  body  upon  the  rights  of  the  Executive,  and  the 
Tenure-of-Office  Acts  were  intended  to  deprive  him  of 
control  over  his  own  executive  agents.  President  Wilson 
has  very  clearly  stated  the  advisory  position  of  the 
Cabinet.  "Self-reliant  men,"  he  writes,  "will  regard 
their  Cabinets  as  Executive  Councils;  men  less  self- 
reliant  or  more  prudent  will  regard  them  as  also  political 
councils,  and  will  wish  to  call  into  them  men  who  have 
earned  the  confidence  of  their  party.  The  character  of 
the  Cabinet  may  be  made  a  nice  index  of  the  theory 

1  Woodbum,  p.  191. 

2  Stevens,  The  Sources  of  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States  in 
Relation  to  Colonial  and  English  History,  p.  168. 


HEADS  OF  DEPARTMENTS  AS  CABINET    45 

of  the  presidential  office,  as  well  as  of  the  President's 
theory  of  party  government,  but  the  one  view  is,  so  far 
as  I  can  see,  as  constitutional  as  the  other."1 

In  recent  years,  especially  since  the  Spanish- American 
War,  the  tendency  has  been  to  accord  more  rights  to  the 
Cabinet  by  the  Chief  Executive,  while  attempted  con- 
gressional interferences,  such  as  the  Tenure-of-Office 
Acts,  have  been  withdrawn.  The  growing  power  of  the 
President  has  led  to  much  discussion  of  the  executive 
prerogatives  and  of  the  relations  of  the  Cabinet  to  Con- 
gress. The  advisability  of  giving  seats  in  Congress  to 
the  cabinet  officers  has  received  some  attention  and 
various  propositions  have  been  advanced  on  the  sub- 
ject. Those  who  favor  such  a  procedure  contend  that 
should  the  members  of  the  Cabinet  be  given  seats  in 
Congress,  with  power  to  introduce  and  debate  upon 
measures  but  with  no  power  to  vote,  such  a  change 
would  make  the  passage  of  proper  departmental  legisla- 
tion more  easy.  The  President,  since  the  Federal  Ad- 
ministration began,  has  expressed  his  wishes  directly  to 
Congress  by  messages;  indirectly,  in  person,  or  through 
his  executive  officers  to  the  individual  members  of  the 
Senate  or  the  House.  In  the  records  of  the  First  Congress 
are  instances  in  which  the  President  himself  and  even 
members  of  his  Cabinet  appeared  in  Congress  to  advo- 
cate measures.  On  the  22d  of  August,  1789,  President 
Washington  and  the  Secretary  of  War  came  to  the  Senate, 
bringing  a  treaty  with  the  Southern  Indians,  which  the 
Senators  were  apparently  expected  to  consent  to  simply 
1  Constitutional  Government  in  the  United  States,  p.  77. 


46  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

on  hearing  it  read.  When  the  whole  matter  was  post- 
poned and  referred  to  a  committee,  the  President, 
records  Senator  Maclay,1  "wore  an  aspect  of  stern  dis- 
pleasure," and  withdrew  at  length  "with  a  discontented 
air,"  and,  adds  Maclay  naively,  "had  it  been  any  other 
man  than  the  man  whom  I  wish  to  regard  as  the  first 
character  in  the  world,  I  would  have  said,  with  sullen 
dignity."  When  the  President  appeared  again  in  the 
Senate  on  Monday,  the  24th,  he  had  recovered  his 
equanimity,  and  was  "placid  and  serene,"  consenting  to 
amendment  of  articles  of  the  treaty.2 

It  was  the  custom  of  Washington  and  it  has  been  the 
practice  of  President  Wilson  to  appear  before  Congress 
and  deliver  his  messages  on  important  subjects  in 
person.  Should  the  President  so  desire,  there  would  seem 
to  be  no  constitutional  reason  why  he  should  not  enter 
into  debates  in  Congress  upon  pending  legislation,  al- 
though there  exist  many  extra-legal  reasons  against  such 
practice.  If  the  President  in  person  could  introduce  bills 
and  participate  in  debates  in  Congress,  there  would 
seem  to  be  no  constitutional  reason  why  he  should  not 
so  act  through  his  executive  agents,  the  members  of  the 
Cabinet.  On  the  other  hand,  through  the  consequent 
right  of  members  of  Congress  to  question  cabinet  officers 
officially  appearing  in  Congress  as  to  administration 
policies,  the  President  might  find  himself  seriously  ham- 
pered in  both  his  legislative  and  executive  programme. 

1  Journal  of  William  Maclay,  p.  135. 

2  Rowland,  Life  and  Correspondence  of  Charles  Carroll  of  Carroll- 
ton,  vol.  II,  p.  137. 


HEADS  OF  DEPARTMENTS  AS  CABINET    47 

This  question  of  giving  to  members  of  the  Cabinet  some 
individual  and  definite  relation  to  Congress  has  been 
considered  from  time  to  time  by  political  theorists  and 
in  the  public  press.  At  present,  however,  it  would  seem 
that  the  President  is  able  without  difficulty  to  exert 
upon  Congress  the  necessary  influence  for  the  passage  of 
party  measures  by  the  means  at  present  existing,  and  it 
seems  doubtful  whether  any  change  in  this  respect  is 
likely  to  occur.  I  am  inclined  to  the  opinion  that  the 
presence  of  the  Cabinet  in  Congress  would  seriously  in- 
terfere with  the  power  of  the  Executive. 

President  Wilson  has  followed  the  practice  in  cabinet 
meetings  of  having  each  department  represented.  In 
the  absence  of  the  Secretary,  an  assistant  secretary  or 
other  designated  official  has  appeared  to  represent  the 
department,  but  this  is  in  no  way  a  radical  departure 
from  the  previous  practice.  The  Vice-President  has 
never  been  considered  a  member  of  the  Cabinet.  From 
certain  points  of  view,  it  would  be  a  most  excellent 
modification  of  the  present  practice  if  the  Vice-President 
should  be  admitted  to  the  regular  meetings  wherein  are 
discussed  the  executive  policies  of  the  Government,  and 
such  a  procedure  has  from  time  to  time  been  considered. 
In  the  main,  however,  the  status  of  the  Cabinet  as  a 
council  has  undergone  little  change  since  the  days  of 
President  Johnson,  and  although  its  powers  and  rela- 
tions present  a  field  for  much  interesting  speculation, 
as  long  as  our  Government  retains  its  present  form 
the  Cabinet  will  probably  remain  in  its  position  as  an 
unofficial  advisory  body,  whose  influence  on  general 


48  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

executive  policies  will  depend  upon  the  character  of  its 
members  and  the  personal  force  of  the  President.  As  to 
the  relation  of  the  Vice-President  to  the  Cabinet,  the 
Constitution  provides  that  the  Vice-President  shall  be 
President  of  the  Senate,  and  that  he  shall  have  no  vote 
unless  the  Senate  be  equally  divided.1  Article  I  deals 
with  the  legislative  powers,  while  Article  II  deals  with 
the  executive  powers.  The  executive  power  is  vested 
in  the  President  alone,  and  the  exclusion  of  the  Vice- 
President  from  the  Cabinet  seems  to  be  due  to  the  theory 
that  during  the  life  of  the  President  the  Vice-President's 
executive  potentialities  are  dormant  and  that  he  has  no 
duties  except  as  President  of  the  Senate,  of  which  he  is 
a  constitutional  part. 

In  the  beginning  there  was  considerable  discussion 
as  to  the  status  of  the  Vice-President  and  his  relation  to 
the  Government.  We  are  again  indebted  to  Senator 
Maclay  for  light  on  this  subject.  Senator  Maclay  was 
a  Democrat  and  began  to  differ  with  the  Federalists 
very  early  in  the  first  session  of  the  Senate.  He  boldly 
objected  to  the  presence  of  the  President  in  the  Senate 
while  business  was  being  transacted  and  opposed  any 
augmentation  of  the  power  of  the  Executive.  According 
to  him,  John  Adams  in  the  session  of  April  25,  1789, 
said  to  the  Senate,  "  Gentlemen,  I  do  not  know  whether 
the  framers  of  the  Constitution  had  in  view  the  two 
Kings  of  Sparta  or  the  two  Consuls  of  Rome  when  they 
framed  it;  one  to  have  all  the  power  while  he  held  it, 
and  the  other  to  be  nothing.  Nor  do  I  know  whether  the 
1  Art.  I,  sec.  3,  clause  4. 


HEADS  OF  DEPARTMENTS  AS  CABINET    49 

architect  that  formed  our  room  and  the  wide  chair  in 
it  (to  hold  two,  I  suppose)  had  the  Constitution  before 
him.  Gentlemen,  I  feel  great  difficulty  how  to  act.  I 
am  possessed  of  two  separate  powers,  the  one  in  esse 
and  the  other  in  posse.  I  am  Vice-President.  In  this  I 
am  nothing,  but  I  may  be  everything.  But  I  am  Presi- 
dent also  of  the  Senate.  When  the  President  comes  into 
the  Senate,  what  shall  I  be?  I  cannot  be  [President] 
then.  No,  gentlemen,  I  cannot,  I  cannot."  l 

Senator  Elsworth,  continues  Maclay,  thumbed  over 
the  sheet  Constitution  and  turned  it  for  some  time.  At 
length  he  rose  and  addressed  the  Chair  with  the  utmost 
gravity.  "Mr.  President,  I  have  looked  over  the  Con- 
stitution [pause],  and  I  find,  sir,  it  is  evident  and  clear, 
sir,  that  wherever  the  Senate  are  to  be,  there,  sir,  you 
must  be  at  the  head  of  them."  The  Senate  itself  an- 
swered the  Vice-President's  query,  and  ever  since  the 
Vice-President  has  remained  President  of  the  Senate 
alone,  and  has  had  no  part  in  the  cabinet  councils  or  the 
work  of  the  Executive. 

Adams,  however,  fought  hard  to  establish  the  posi- 
tion of  the  Vice-President  as  an  executive  officer,  and 
Maclay  narrates  many  interesting  and  often  amusing 
happenings  in  the  Senate  before  the  executive  notion 
was  driven  from  the  mind  of  the  presiding  officer.  He 
signed  the  proceedings  of  the  Senate  at  first  as  "Vice- 
President,"  and  this  procedure  was  the  subject  of  much 
debate  in  and  out  of  the  Senate.  The  distinguished  Rob- 
ert Morris,  then  Senator  from  Pennsylvania,  thought 
1  Journal  of  William  Maclay,  p.  3. 


50  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

this  style  of  signature  correct;  Senator  Carroll,  of 
Maryland  (the  "Signer"),  said  he  thought  it  was  "a 
matter  of  indifference,"  but  Maclay  rose  in  the  Senate 
and  said,  "The  very  term  Vice-President  carried  on  the 
face  of  it  the  idea  of  holding  the  place  of  the  President  in 
his  absence;  that  every  act  done  by  the  Vice-President 
as  such  implied  that  when  so  acting  he  held  the  place  of 
the  President."  Seeing  the  Vice-President  "willing  to 
bear  me  down,"  Maclay  continued,  "Sir,  we  know  you 
not  as  Vice-President  within  this  House.  As  President  of 
the  Senate  only  do  we  know  you."  l 

Another  discussion  of  the  matter  came  up  when  the 
oath  of  office  was  administered  to  Adams  by  Senator 
John  Langdon,  of  New  Hampshire.  The  minutes  of  the 
Senate  read:  "Mr.  Langdon  administered  the  oath  to 
the  Vice-President,"  and  this  started  anew  the  con- 
troversy as  to  the  position  of  that  official.  All  this  dis- 
cussion was  concurrent  with  that  as  to  the  titles  of  the 
various  officials,  and  it  is  strange  to  us  now  to  find 
Senators  Grayson,  of  Virginia,  and  Carroll,  of  Mary- 
land, opposing  all  forms  of  titles,  while  the  New  Eng- 
land Senators  favored  them.  For  a  time  it  seemed  as 
if  the  President  might  be  styled,  "His  Highness  the 
President  of  the  United  States  and  Protector  of  the 
Rights  of  the  Same,"  or  "Elective  Majesty."  In  those 
days  when  the  terms  of  the  Constitution  were  being 
defined  and  the  experiment  of  democracy  was  for  the 
first  time  being  tried,  the  debates  of  Congress  are  most 
interesting  and  instructive.  Maclay  never  intended 
1  Maclay,  Journal,  p.  40. 


HEADS  OF  DEPARTMENTS  AS  CABINET    51 

his  "Journal"  to  be  published.  It  is,  therefore,  one  of 
the  most  interesting  documents  of  the  time,  and  well 
worth  reading.  I  cannot  resist  the  temptation  to  con- 
clude this  chapter  by  a  quotation  from  Maclay  as  to  his 
views  of  the  value  of  "The  Federalist"  and  even  of  the 
Constitution  itself.  He  writes,  on  June  14,  1789:  "My 
mind  revolts,  in  many  instances,  against  the  Constitu- 
tion of  the  United  States.  Indeed,  I  am  afraid  it  will 
turn  out  the  vilest  of  all  traps  that  ever  was  set  to  en- 
snare the  freedom  of  an  unsuspecting  people.  Treaties 
formed  by  the  Executive  of  the  United  States  are  to  be 
the  law  of  the  land.  To  cloak  the  Executive  with  legis- 
lative authority  is  setting  aside  our  modern  and  much- 
boasted  distribution  of  power  into  legislative,  judicial, 
and  executive  —  discoveries  unknown  to  Locke  and 
Montesquieu,  and  all  the  ancient  writers.  It  certainly 
contradicts  all  the  modern  theory  of  government,  and 
in  practice  must  be  tyranny.  Memorandum!  Get,  if  I 
can,  The  Federalist  without  buying  it.  It  is  not  worth 
it."  J 

1  Journal,  p.  75. 


CHAPTER  V 

STATUS  OP  THE  HEADS  OF  THE  EXECUTIVE 
DEPARTMENTS  INDIVIDUALLY 

The  heads  of  the  executive  departments  are  the  exec- 
utive agents  of  the  President.  Although  the  Senate  par- 
ticipates in  their  appointment,  it  is  now  settled  that  the 
power  of  removal  is  vested  in  the  President  alone,  and, 
with  certain  limitations,  they  are  responsible  to  him 
alone.  They  are  under  no  direct  responsibility  to  Con- 
gress, except  when  special  duties  are  laid  upon  them,  and 
their  relations  to  the  nation  at  large  arise  only  by  the 
possibility  that  under  certain  remote  contingencies  they 
may  be  called  upon  to  exercise  the  presidential  functions 
for  a  limited  period. 

The  relations  of  the  heads  of  the  departments  to  the 
President  have  been  defined  from  time  to  time  by  the 
Supreme  Court.  The  questions  decided  have  been  of  a 
limited  nature,  but  in  a  general  way  the  law  is  clearly 
settled.  The  President  acts  through  the  heads  of  the 
several  departments,  in  relation  to  the  subjects  apper- 
taining to  their  respective  duties.1  It  follows  from  this 
that  the  act  of  a  department  is  deemed  to  be  the  act  of 
the  President. 

In  the  case  of  Wilcox  v.  Jackson,  13  Peters,  513,  Mr. 
Justice  Barbour  in  discussing  an  act  of  the  Secretary  of 
1  Williams  v.  United  States,  1  Howard,  298. 


INDIVIDUAL  DEPARTMENT  HEADS      53 

War,  said  (at  page  513) :  "  The  President  speaks  and  acts 
through  the  heads  of  the  several  departments  in  relation 
to  subjects  which  appertain  to  their  respective  duties. 
Both  military  posts  and  Indian  affairs,  including  agen- 
cies, belong  to  the  War  Department.  Hence,  we  con- 
sider the  act  of  the  War  Department,  in  requiring  this 
reservation  to  be  made,  as  being  in  legal  contemplation 
the  act  of  the  President,  and,  consequently,  that  the 
reservation  thus  made  was  in  legal  effect  a  reservation 
made  by  the  President  within  the  terms  of  the  act  of 
Congress." 

This  principle  was  approved  in  Hegler  v.  Faulkner, 
153  U.S.  117,  when  acts  of  the  Indian  department  were 
held  to  be  acts  of  the  President. 

This  applies  only  to  matters  of  administration,  for 
where  the  President  acts  in  a  judicial  capacity,  it  must 
appear  that  he  acted  on  the  matter  himself.  This  was 
stated  by  Chief  Justice  Waite  in  the  case  of  Dunkle  v. 
United  States,  122  U.S.  543,  where  the  approval  by  the 
President  of  the  finding  of  a  court-martial  was  in  ques- 
tion. 

In  the  case  of  Kendall,  Postmaster-General  of  the  United 
States  v.  United  States,  12  Peters,  524,  the  power  of  the 
executive  department  heads  was  discussed.  Kendall, 
the  Postmaster-General,  refused  to  permit  payment  of 
certain  money  allowed  by  his  predecessor  to  contractors 
for  work  done  for  the  department.  These  contractors, 
therefore,  secured  the  passage  of  a  bill  in  Congress  direct- 
ing payment,  and  later  the  matter  was  heard  on  applica- 
tion for  a  writ  of  mandamus.   Mr.  Justice  Thompson 


54  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

said  (at  page  610)  that  the  granting  of  this  writ  did  not 
involve  an  interference  with  the  executive  power  of  the 
President.  "The  executive  power  is  vested  in  a  Presi- 
dent, and  as  far  as  his  powers  are  derived  from  the 
Constitution,  he  is  beyond  the  reach  of  any  other  de- 
partment, except  in  the  mode  prescribed  by  the  Con- 
stitution through  the  impeaching  power.  But  it  by 
no  means  follows  that  every  officer  in  every  branch  of 
the  department  is  under  the  exclusive  direction  of  the 
President.  There  are  certain  political  duties  imposed 
upon  many  officers  in  the  executive  department,  the  dis- 
charge of  which  is  under  the  direction  of  the  President. 
But  it  would  be  an  alarming  doctrine  that  Congress 
cannot  impose  upon  any  executive  officer  any  duty  they 
may  think  proper  which  is  not  repugnant  to  any  rights 
secured  and  protected  by  the  Constitution,  and  in  such 
cases,  the  duty  and  responsibility  grow  out  of  and  are 
subject  to  the  control  of  the  law  and  not  to  the  direction 
of  the  President.  And  this  is  emphatically  the  case 
where  the  duty  enjoined  is  of  a  mere  ministerial  char- 
acter." The  court  intimated  that  the  President  could 
not  refuse  to  allow  the  action  ordered  by  Congress  or 
restrict  it  by  reason  of  his  power  as  Executive. 

The  general  powers  of  the  heads  of  departments  are 
those  necessary  to  the  proper  discharge  of  their  duties. 
The  head  of  a  department  has  the  same  power  as  his 
predecessors  to  continue  an  act  relating  to  the  business 
of  the  department.1  When  required  to  give  information 
on  any  subject  he  may  do  so  by  acting  through  his  sub- 
1  United  States  v.  MacDaniel,  7  Peters,  13. 


INDIVIDUAL  DEPARTMENT  HEADS      55 

ordinates.1  He  need  not  show  statutory  authority  for 
every  act  done.  There  are  numerous  instances  which 
cannot  be  anticipated  by  statutory  provision  in  which 
he  must  exercise  his  discretion.2  Courts  cannot  usually 
call  upon  heads  of  departments  to  answer  in  relation  to 
official  acts.  The  court  said,  in  Decatur  v.  Paulding, 
14  Peters,  522,  that  many  acts  required  of  the  heads  of 
the  executive  departments  required  use  of  discretion, 
and  where  not  purely  ministerial  were  not  subject  to 
order  of  the  courts.  A  payment  of  a  pension  granted  by 
Congress  was  here  refused  by  the  Secretary  of  the  Navy, 
and  the  refusal  sustained,  although  the  law  of  Kendall  v. 
United  States  was  held  good. 

Regulations  of  the  executive  departments  have  the 
force  of  law  unless  in  conflict  with  acts  of  Congress,3 
and  regulations  prescribed  by  the  heads  of  departments 
under  congressional  authority  may  lawfully  support  acts 
done  in  accordance  therewith. 

The  position  of  the  heads  of  the  executive  departments 
is  summed  up  in  Cooley's  Blackstone's  Commentaries 
(book  1,  pages  231  to  236).  He  there  states:  "The 
President,  not  the  Cabinet,  is  responsible  for  all  the 
measures  of  the  Administration,  and  whatever  is  done 
by  one  of  the  heads  of  departments  is  considered  as 
done  by  the  President,  through  the  proper  executive 
agent.  In  this  fact  consists  one  important  difference 
between  the  Executive  (King)  of  Great  Britain  and  of 

1  Miller  v.  Mayor  of  New  York,  109  U.S.  394. 

2  United  States  v.  MacDaniel,  supra. 

•  United  States  v.  Symonds,  120  U.S.  49. 


56  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

the  United  States;  the  acts  of  the  former  being  con- 
sidered as  those  of  his  advisers,  who  alone  are  respon- 
sible therefor,  while  the  acts  of  the  advisers  of  the 
American  Executive  are  considered  as  directed  and  con- 
trolled by  him." 

This  responsibility  of  the  President  arises  from  his  in- 
vestment by  the  Constitution  with  the  executive  power. 
His  control  or  power  of  direction  over  the  executive  offi- 
cers arises  from  his  power  of  removal  rather  than  from 
his  power  of  appointment.  Since  the  President's  control 
over  his  Cabinet  depends  upon  his  power  to  remove  any 
of  the  heads  of  the  departments,  some  remarks  concern- 
ing this  power  of  removal  are  necessary  in  considering 
the  status  of  those  heads  of  departments. 

The  presidential  power  of  removal  is  so  briefly  and 
well  set  forth  in  Goodnow's  "Comparative  Administra- 
tive Law"  (vol.  i,  p.  64)  that  it  will  best  serve  our 
purpose  to  quote  what  the  President  of  Johns  Hopkins 
University  says:  — 

"  The  Constitution  gave  the  power  of  removal  to  no 
authority  expressly.  The  question  came  up  before  the 
First  Congress  in  the  discussion  of  the  act  organizing  the 
Department  of  Foreign  Affairs.  Although  there  was  a 
difference  of  opinion  in  the  Congress  as  to  who  under 
the  Constitution  possessed  this  power,  it  was  finally  de- 
cided by  a  very  small  majority  that  the  power  of  re- 
moval was  a  part  of  the  executive  power  and  therefore 
belonged  to  the  President.  This  was  the  recognized  con- 
struction of  the  Constitution  for  a  great  number  of 
years,  although  it  did  not  meet  with  the  approval  of 


INDIVIDUAL  DEPARTMENT  HEADS      57 

some  of  the  most  eminent  statesmen.  (This  construc- 
tion of  the  Constitution  was  approved  by  the  United 
States  courts  in  United  States  v.  Avery,  Deady,  204.) 
After  more  than  three  quarters  of  a  century  Congress 
deliberately  reversed  this  decision  and  by  the  Tenure- 
of-Office  Acts  of  1867-69  (later  incorporated  in  the 
Revised  Statutes  as  sections  1767-69)  decided  that  the 
Constitution  had  not  implicitly  or  expressly  settled  this 
point,  and  that  Congress  was  therefore  the  body  to  de- 
cide who  possessed  the  power  of  removal.  Congress 
then  decided  that  the  power  of  removal  of  Senate  ap- 
pointments belonged  to  the  President  and  the  Senate. 
(This  was  constitutional,  United  States  v.  Avery,  Deady, 
204.)  For  twenty  years  this  was  the  law  of  the  land, 
though  no  one  was  able  to  explain  exactly  what  the 
Tenure-of-Office  Acts  meant,  on  account  of  the  ob- 
scurity of  their  wording,  but  finally,  in  1887,  Congress 
repealed  them.  The  result  is  that  the  early  interpreta- 
tion of  the  Constitution  must  be  regarded  as  the  correct 
one  at  the  present  time.  That  is,  the  President  alone 
has  the  power  of  removal  of  even  Senate  appointments. 
Though  the  Tenure-of-Office  Acts  had  the  effect  of 
temporarily  weakening  the  power  of  the  President,  the 
complete  power  of  removal  had  existed  so  long  as  to 
determine  the  position  of  the  President  in  the  National 
Government,  and  has  been  of  incalculable  advantage  in 
producing  an  efficient  and  harmonious  national  adminis- 
tration. The  benefits  which  followed  the  interpretation 
of  the  First  Congress  on  this  question  were  unquestion- 
ably the  reason  why  the  Tenure-of-Office  Acts  were 


58  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

finally  repealed.  From  the  power  of  removal  has  been 
evolved  the  President's  power  of  direction  and  super- 
vision over  the  entire  national  administration.  To  it  is 
due  the  recognition  of  the  possession  by  the  President  of 
the  administrative  power." 

The  proceedings  in  the  First  Congress  to  which  Dr. 
Goodnow  refers  are  set  forth  in  full  in  the  journals  both 
of  William  Maclay,  Senator  from  Pennsylvania,  and  of 
John  Adams,  then  Vice-President,  and  the  importance 
of  the  decision  that  the  President  alone  possessed  the 
power  of  removal  cannot  be  overestimated.  The  de- 
cision was  not  only  important  to  the  Executive,  but  was 
a  definite  delimitation  of  the  power  of  the  Senate,  which 
at  the  first  session  consisted  of  not  more  than  eighteen 
members,  and  which  showed  a  considerable  tendency  to 
become  unduly  powerful  as  an  advisory  council  to  the 
President.  The  bill  for  organizing  the  Department  of 
Foreign  Affairs  was  discussed  on  the  14th  of  July,  1789. 
This  bill,  drawn  by  Madison,  who  was  then  in  the 
House  of  Representatives,  provided  that  the  members 
of  the  new  department  "shall  be  appointed  by  the 
President,  by  and  with  the  advice  and  consent  of  the 
Senate,  and  to  be  removable  by  the  President."  Senator 
Maclay  objected  strongly  to  this  power  of  removal  be- 
ing given  to  the  President  alone,  declaring  that  "the 
depriving  power  should  be  the  same  as  the  appointing 
power."  The  Senate  was  equally  divided  on  the  ques- 
tion, nine  for  and  nine  against  the  President's  "un- 
qualified power  of  removal,"  and  Adams,  as  President  of 
the  Senate,  decided  in  favor  of  the  President's  power. 


INDIVIDUAL  DEPARTMENT  HEADS      59 

Maclay  considered  this  a  great  gain  for  what  he  called 
the  "Court  Party,"  and  an  attempt  to  destroy  the 
Senate.1  Charles  Carroll  of  Carrollton,  Senator  from 
Maryland,  spoke  strongly  in  favor  of  the  President's 
power  of  removal.  "  The  burden  of  his  discourse  seemed 
to  be  the  want  of  power  in  the  President,  and  a  desire  of 
increasing  it."  2  The  Senators  seemed  fully  to  realize  the 
importance  of  their  decision  in  the  power  of  removal, 
and  Adams  gives  a  digest  of  Charles  Carroll  of  Carroll- 
ton's  argument  which  is  noteworthy:  "The  executive 
power  is  commensurate  with  the  legislative  and  judicial 
powers.  .  .  .  The  same  power  which  creates  must  anni- 
hilate. ...  If  a  minister  is  suspected  to  betray  secrets 
to  an  enemy,  the  Senate  not  sitting,  cannot  the  Presi- 
dent displace  nor  suspend?  The  States-General  of 
France  demanded  that  offices  should  be  held  during 
good  behavior.  It  is  improbable  that  a  bad  President 
should  be  chosen, —  but  may  not  bad  Senators  be  chosen? 
Is  there  a  due  balance  of  power  between  the  executive 
and  legislative,  either  in  the  General  Government  or 
State  Governments?  [Montesquieu  quoted  here]  English 
liberty  will  be  lost  when  the  legislative  shall  be  more 
corrupt  than  the  executive." 3  This  outline  of  Carroll's 
argument  is  enlightening  as  to  the  uncertainty  that  ex- 
isted in  those  days  as  to  the  future  of  the  new  Govern- 
ment, even  in  the  mind  of  one  who  had  signed  the 
Declaration  of  Independence.  The  President's  power  of 
removal  thus  secured  has  proved  not  only  a  great  source 

1  Journal  of  William  Maclay,  p.  116.  2  Ibid.,  p.  113. 

8  Works  of  John  Adams,  vol.  ill,  pp.  408-12. 


60  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

of  indirect  influence  to  the  President  over  Congress,  but, 
as  Dr.  Goodnow  has  said,  is  the  basis  of  his  administra- 
tive power. 

The  passage  of  the  Tenure-of-Office  Acts  was  caused 
by  the  desire  of  Congress  to  prevent  the  removal  of 
Secretary  Stanton  by  President  Johnson  and  arose  from 
the  bitter  differences  of  the  President  and  Congress  on 
the  subject  of  Reconstruction.  Congress  deprived  the 
President  of  many  of  his  constitutional  prerogatives 
and  attempted  to  change  the  system  of  government 
to  a  form  of  parliamentary  responsibility  to  Congress. 
This  perversion  of  the  provisions  of  the  Constitution 
did  not,  however,  long  continue,  and  to-day  Congress 
has  little  direct  power  over  the  heads  of  the  depart- 
ments. It  may  impose  certain  duties  of  a  limited  na- 
ture upon  those  who  are  heads  of  departments,  and 
since  they  are  officers  of  the  United  States,  it  would 
seem  that  they  are  liable  to  impeachment.   In  1876, 
Secretary  of  War  Belknap  was  impeached,  but  resigned 
before  charges  were  formulated.     It  is  unlikely  that 
such   proceedings  will   be   frequent,  since   the  only 
result  could  be  removal  of  the  impeached  officer.  It  may 
be  said  that  the  cabinet  officers  have  no  direct  relation 
to  Congress,  and  are  in  no  general  way  under  its  direc- 
tion. In  the  same  way,  it  is  true  that  the  heads  of  the 
executive  departments  have  no  direct  relation  to  the 
nation  at  large,  aside  from  their  responsibility  as  private 
persons  to  the  courts,  except  as  they  may  be  called  upon 
to  perform  the  duties  of  President. 

Although  no  case  has  occurred  in  the  history  of  the 


INDIVIDUAL  DEPARTMENT  HEADS      61 

Republic  in  which  such  a  state  of  affairs  has  existed,  the 
matter  of  presidential  succession  of  the  Cabinet  is  worthy 
of  careful  notice.  It  is  provided  by  law  that,  in  case  of 
inability  of  both  President  and  Vice-President  to  per- 
form the  duties  of  the  office  of  President,  the  executive 
functions  shall  be  exercised  by  one  of  the  heads  of  the 
executive  departments.  The  Revised  Statutes  (sections 
146-50)  provided  for  proceedings  in  case  of  vacancy  in 
the  office  of  both  President  and  Vice-President,  and  for 
an  election  to  fill  the  vacancies.  The  method  there 
proposed  required  that  in  case  of  removal,  death,  resig- 
nation, or  inability  of  both  the  President  and  Vice- 
President,  the  President  of  the  Senate,  or,  if  there  were 
none,  then  the  Speaker  of  the  House  of  Representatives, 
for  the  time  being,  should  act  as  President  until  the 
disability  should  be  removed  or  a  President  elected.  It 
was  not  contemplated  that  this  interregnum  should  be 
of  long  duration,  for  the  law  (passed  March  1,  1792) 
required  that,  whenever  the  offices  of  President  and 
Vice-President  should  both  become  vacant,  the  Secre- 
tary of  State  should  forthwith  cause  a  notification  to 
be  made  to  the  Executive  of  every  State,  requiring 
that  electors  of  a  President  and  Vice-President  be  ap- 
pointed or  chosen  in  the  several  States.  If  the  first 
Wednesday  in  December  were  two  months  distant  from 
the  time  of  the  notification,  the  electors  were  to  be  ap- 
pointed or  chosen  within  thirty-four  days  preceding  such 
first  Wednesday  in  December.  If  there  should  not  be  the 
space  of  two  months  before  the  first  Wednesday  of  De- 
cember, the  same  date  in  the  year  next  ensuing  was  to  be 


62  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

set  as  the  time  for  the  meeting  and  voting  of  the  electors; 
but  in  this  last  case,  if  the  term  for  which  the  President 
and  Vice-President  last  in  office  were  elected  would  ex- 
pire on  the  3d  of  March  next  ensuing,  no  special  election 
was  required.1  This  act  was  never  brought  into  service, 
nor  the  effect  of  its  provisions  tested.  It  presented  obvi- 
ous objections  that  in  the  beginning  of  the  Republic  were 
not  fully  appreciated.  It  might  well  occur  that  the  Presi- 
dent of  the  Senate  or  the  Speaker  of  the  House  would  be 
members  of  a  party  opposed  to  that  of  the  President  or 
Vice-President,  or  that  these  officers,  while  belonging  to 
the  same  party,  would  represent  a  faction  opposed  in 
policy  to  the  former  Executive.  The  disastrous  results  of 
a  sudden  change  in  the  attitude  and  direction  of  the 
Executive  need  not  be  commented  upon.  This  old  act 
was  of  a  piece  with  the  early  provisions  that  allowed  a 
President  and  Vice-President  to  be  elected  who  belonged 
to  different  parties. 

The  development  of  the  executive  power  and  of  the 
position  of  the  heads  of  the  executive  departments  is  well 
shown  in  the  Act  of  January  17, 1886,  which  repealed  the 
old  act  for  filling  the  presidential  office.  This  act  names 
as  successor  to  the  Presidency,  in  case  of  inability  of 
both  the  President  and  Vice-President,  the  Secretary  of 
State,  and  if  there  be  none,  or  if  he  be  incapacitated, 
the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury.  Under  the  same  circum- 
stances, on  inability  of  this  officer,  the  office  is  to  be 
filled  by  the  Secretary  of  War,  the  Attorney-General, 
the  Postmaster-General,  the  Secretary  of  the  Navy,  or 
»  1  U.S.  Stat.  L.  239. 


INDIVIDUAL  DEPARTMENT  HEADS      63 

the  Secretary  of  the  Interior,  in  the  order  named.  The 
Departments  of  Agriculture,  of  Commerce,  and  of  La- 
bor, not  being  at  that  time  created,  their  heads  were 
not  named  as  possible  Presidents.  It  is  usually  stated 
that  the  order  of  succession  followed  that  of  the  estab- 
lishment in  time  of  the  departments,  but  this  statement 
is  based  upon  the  erroneous  belief  that  the  Treasury 
Department  antedated  that  of  War.  The  succession  fol- 
lowed, however,  the  order  of  precedence  that  has  from 
the  first  been  recognized  among  the  members  of  the 
Cabinet. 

By  the  provisions  of  this  act,  the  continuance  of  the 
policy  of  the  Administration  is  assured  until  the  election 
of  the  next  President.  The  method  of  such  election  is 
not  provided  for,  the  act  merely  stating  that  if  Congress 
be  not  at  the  time  in  session,  or  not  to  meet  within 
twenty  days  thereafter,  the  person  on  whom  the  presi- 
dential duty  should  devolve  shall  issue  a  proclamation 
convening  Congress  in  extraordinary  session,  giving 
twenty  days'  notice  of  the  time  of  meeting.  The  act 
does  not  state  what  Congress  is  to  do  if  it  be  in  session  or 
at  its  meeting,  and  no  cause  has  arisen  to  test  this  act  in 
any  way. 

The  act  requires  that  the  persons  named  shall  have 
been  appointed  by  the  advice  and  consent  of  the  Senate 
to  the  offices  named  in  the  act,  possess  the  requisite  con- 
stitutional qualifications,  and  be  not  under  impeach- 
ment by  the  House  of  Representatives  at  the  time  the 
powers  and  duties  of  the  office  devolve  upon  them  re- 
spectively. This  last  clause  is  of  interest  because  of  its 


64  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

definite  assumption  that  the  members  of  the  Cabinet 
are  liable  to  impeachment  as  within  the  class  of  "civil 
officers  of  the  United  States"  who  may  be  removed  from 
office  on  impeachment,1  and  for  the  further  recognition 
of  the  fact  that  heads  of  the  departments  are  among 
those  "other  officers  of  the  United  States,"  whose 
appointment  is  by  the  Constitution  2  made  subject  to 
the  advice  and  consent  of  the  Senate. 

1  Constitution,  art.  n,  sec.  4.  2  Ibid.,  art.  n,  sec.  2. 


CHAPTER  VI 

ORGANIZATION  OF  THE  EXECUTIVE  DEPARTMENTS 

Having  traced  the  creation  and  development  of  the 
various  departments  and  noted  the  present  status  of  the 
executive  officers  of  the  Government,  we  are  now  in  a 
position  to  consider  the  organization  and  regulations 
that  control  actual  administration.  It  will  be  helpful  to 
take  a  bird's-eye  view  of  the  Federal  Executive  as  a 
whole  before  proceeding  to  consider  the  typical  organ- 
ization of  the  departments.  At  the  head  of  the  Federal 
Executive  stands  the  President  alone.  The  Vice-Presi- 
dent has  no  place  in  the  executive  machinery,  nor  is 
there  any  other  officer  of  the  Government  qualified  to 
act  as  an  assistant  President.  The  Secretary  to  the 
President  comes  nearest  of  any  of  the  federal  officials 
to  holding  the  place  of  assistant  President,  and  some 
holders  of  this  position  have  cast  envious  eyes  at  the 
title  "Assistant  to  the  President."  The  Secretary  to  the 
President  is  chief  of  the  President's  particular  execu- 
tive assistants,  and  is  the  gateway  of  approach  through 
which  all  must  pass  who  desire  to  confer  with  the  Chief 
Executive  in  person.  The  Secretary,  therefore,  occupies 
a  position  of  extreme  importance,  and  his  personality 
and  ability  may  make  or  mar  the  success  of  his  chief's 
Administration.  He  is  not  a  member  of  the  Cabinet, 
although  brought  into  intimate  relation  with  the  mem- 
bers of  that  unofficial  body.  Since  he  is  really  an  exten- 


66  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

sion  of  the  President's  own  personality,  there  seems  to 
be  no  reason  for  any  change  in  the  status  that  the  Secre- 
tary to  the  President  now  maintains.  He  is  assisted  in 
his  work  by  the  executive  clerk,  the  chief  clerk,  and 
the  various  office  clerks,  stenographers,  doorkeepers, 
messengers,  and  other  attaches  of  the  President's  office. 
There  are  ten  members  of  the  President's  Cabinet  who 
are  heads  of  the  ten  executive  departments.  The  fol- 
lowing is  a  bare  tabulation  of  the  principal  officers  or 
divisions  under  which  the  work  assigned  to  the  various 
departments  is  performed.  The  names  of  the  various 
bureaus  and  divisions  of  many  of  the  departments  are 
not  here  set  forth,  nor  is  the  following  summary  in  any 
way  a  complete  statement  of  the  agencies  through  which 
the  Federal  Executive  acts.  The  summary,  however, 
will  be  of  great  assistance  to  the  general  reader  by  show- 
ing in  brief  space  the  functions  of  all  the  departments, 
and  should  I  ever  give  to  any  body  of  students  an  ex- 
amination upon  the  subject  of  the  Federal  Executive,  I 
should  most  strongly  recommend  them  to  study  care- 
fully the  following  analysis.  The  ten  members  of  the 
Cabinet  and  the  chief  agencies  of  the  Federal  Executive 
are:  — 

I.  The  Secretary  of  State. 

The  Counselor,  Solicitor,  the  Assistant  Secretary,  Second 
Assistant  Secretary,  Third  Assistant  Secretary,  Director  of 
the  Consular  Service,  Chief  Clerk,  Chiefs  of  Bureaus  and 
Divisions. 
II.  The  Secretary  of  the  Treasury. 

Three  Assistant  Secretaries,  Chief  Clerk,  Chiefs  of  Divi- 
sions, Comptroller  of  the  Currency,  the  Treasurer,  Commis- 
sioner of  Internal  Revenue,  Director  of  the  Mint,  Comptrol- 


ORGANIZATION  OF  DEPARTMENTS      67 

ler  of  the  Treasury,  the  Auditors  f  or'the  various  Departments, 
the  Register  of  the  Treasury,  Bureau  of  Engraving  and 
Printing,  Bureau  of  the  Public  Health,  Coast  Guard  Serv- 
ice, Supervising  Architects'  Office. 

III.  The  Secretary  of  War. 

Assistant  Secretary,  Assistant  and  Chief  Clerk,  Chiefs  of 
Divisions,  General  Staff  Corps,  the  Offices  of  the  Adjutant- 
General,  Inspector-General,  Judge-Advocate-General,  Quar- 
termaster General,  Surgeon-General,  Chief  of  Engineers, 
Chief  of  Ordnance,  Chief  Signal  Officer,  Bureau  of  Insular 
Affairs  (Philippine  Commission,  Porto  Rico  Government, 
and  Dominican  Receivership),  Board  of  Engineers  for 
Rivers  and  Harbors,  Office  of  Public  Buildings,  United  States 
Engineer  Office,  Board  of  Ordnance  and  Fortifications. 

IV.  The  Attorney-General. 

The  Solicitor-General,  the  Assistant  to  the  Attorney- 
General,  Assistant  Attorneys-General,  Attorneys  and  Special 
Assistants,  Chief  Clerk. 
V.  The  Postmaster-General. 

The  First,  Second,  Third,  and  Fourth  Assistant  Post- 
masters-General, with  the  Chief  Clerks  and  forces  of  their 
respective  offices. 

VI.  The  Secretary  of  the  Navy. 

The  Assistant  Secretary,  the  Aides  for  Operations,  Marine 
Corps,  Personnel,  Material,  Education,  Director  of  the  Navy 
Yards,  Chief  Clerk  of  the  Department,  the  Office  of  the 
Admiral  of  the  Navy,  the  Bureaus  of  Navigation,  Yards  and 
Docks,  Ordnance,  Construction  and  Repair,  Steam  Engineer- 
ing, Supplies  and  Accounts,  Medicine  and  Surgery,  Office  of 
the  Judge-Advocate-General,  the  General  Board,  etc. 

VII.  The  Secretary  of  the  Interior. 

Two  Assistant  Secretaries,  Chief  Clerk,  the  Commission- 
ers of  the  General  Land  Office,  of  the  Patent  Office,  of  Pen- 
sions, of  Indian  Affairs,  of  Education,  the  Directors  of  the 
Geological  Survey,  the  Reclamation  Service,  and  of  Mines. 

VIII.  The  Secretary  of  Agriculture. 

The  Assistant  Secretary,  Chief  Clerk,  Solicitor,  Chiefs  of 
the  Weather  Bureau,  of  Animal  Industry,  of  Plant  Industry, 
of  Forest  Service,  of  Chemistry,  of  Soils,  of  Entomology,  etc. 


68  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

IX.  The  Secretary  of  Commerce. 

The  Assistant  Secretary,  Chief  Clerk,  Director  of  the 
Census,  Commissioner  of  Corporations,  Chief  of  the  Bureau 
of  Foreign  and  Domestic  Commerce,  and  the  Directors  or 
Commissioners  of  the  Bureaus  of  Standards,  Fisheries,  Light- 
houses, and  Navigation.  The  Superintendent  of  the  Coast 
and  Geodetic  Survey. 

X.  The  Secretary  of  Labor. 

The  Assistant  Secretary,  the  Chief  Clerk,  the  Commis- 
sioners of  Immigration,  of  Naturalization,  and  of  Labor 
Statistics,  the  Chief  of  the  Children's  Bureau. 

In  a  general  way  the  departments  are  organized  upon 
the  same  plan,  and  are  subject  to  similar  regulations  for 
the  conduct  of  their  business,  but  from  the  nature  of 
their  work  and  the  mode  of  their  development  it  neces- 
sarily results  that  marked  differences  exist  in  the  internal 
structure  of  each.  In  the  early  days,  the  routine  business 
was  apportioned  among  the  several  clerks,  while  the 
Secretary  and  chief  clerk  of  each  department  held  the 
position  of  executive  and  directing  officers.  In  this  way 
one  clerk  would  have  entire  charge  of  a  certain  division 
of  work,  under  the  supervision  of  the  head  of  the  depart- 
ment and  the  chief  clerk,  who  held  the  post  of  general 
superintendent  of  all  the  subordinate  officers  and  em- 
ployees. As  the  business  of  the  department  grew,  it  was 
necessary  to  increase  the  force  employed  on  the  separate 
divisions  of  the  work,  and  in  this  way  developed  the 
present  system  of  coordinate  subdivisions  that  exists, 
under  different  names,  in  all  of  the  departments.  The 
Secretary  and  assistant  secretaries  at  the  head  of  the  de- 
partment, with  a  chief  clerk  having  direct  supervision 
of  all  inferior  clerks,  form  the  executive  management  of 


ORGANIZATION  OF  DEPARTMENTS      69 

the  department.  The  subdivisions  of  each  department 
are  in  a  similar  manner  under  the  direction  of  an  officer 
denominated  Director,  Commissioner,  Chief  of  Bureau, 
Chief  of  Division,  or  Superintendent,  to  agree  with  the 
designations  applying  to  the  subdivisions  in  each  of  the 
departments.  In  the  Department  of  State  these  sub- 
divisions are  termed  Bureaus,  and  the  names  of  the 
Bureau  of  Accounts,  the  Consular  and  the  Diplomatic 
Bureaus,  indicate  the  duties  of  these  subdivisions.  In  the 
Treasury  Department  these  unitary  organizations  are 
simply  termed  Divisions,  with  Chiefs  of  Divisions,  while 
the  Bureaus  of  the  Department  of  Commerce  are  most 
frequently  in  charge  of  Commissioners  or  Directors. 

The  heads  of  these  subdivisions  are  frequently  aided 
in  their  executive  duties  by  chief  clerks  or  assistants, 
whose  position  in  the  subdivision  corresponds  some- 
what to  that  held  by  the  Chief  Clerk  of  the  Department. 

The  Treasury  Department  differs  from  the  typical 
organization  in  that  the  Comptroller  of  the  Treasury, 
the  Register,  the  Treasurer,  the  Supervising  Architect, 
and  the  other  officers,  like  the  Director  of  the  Mint  and 
the  Commissioner  of  Internal  Revenue,  occupy  a  posi- 
tion of  greater  independent  importance  than  that  held 
by  the  chiefs  of  the  ordinary  bureaus  or  divisions,  cor- 
responding more  to  the  various  commissioners  in  the 
Department  of  Commerce.  The  regular  work  of  the 
departments  is  conducted  in  these  divisions  by  a  great 
company  of  clerks  whose  duties  and  responsibilities  vary 
in  a  great  degree.  In  addition  to  these  clerks,  there  are 
the  miscellaneous  employees  of  all  sorts,  —  watchmen, 


70  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

laborers,  messengers,  —  that  are  essential  to  the  conduct 
of  the  great  business  organizations.  A  clear  comprehen- 
sion of  the  detailed  organization  of  each  department  can 
be  got  only  from  an  examination  of  the  register  of  each 
department,  but  is  not  essential  to  a  general  under- 
standing of  the  department  management.  It  will  be  in- 
structive, however,  to  examine  in  detail  the  register  of 
some  of  the  departments  in  order  to  see  the  general  plan. 
The  State  Department  has,  perhaps,  the  simplest  or- 
ganization, and  will,  in  a  limited  way,  serve  as  a  typical 
illustration.  Its  organization  is  as  follows:  — 

Counselor  for  the  Department  of  State. 

The  Assistant  Secretary. 

Second  Assistant  Secretary. 

Third  Assistant  Secretary. 

Director  of  the  Consular  Service. 

Chief  Clerk. 

Solicitor. 

Foreign  Trade  Advisers. 

Chief  of  Bureau  of  — 

Accounts  and  disbursing  clerk; 

Appointments; 

Citizenship ; 

Consular; 

Diplomatic; 

Indexes  and  Archives; 

Rolls  and  Library. 
Chief  of  Division  of  — 

Far-Eastern  Affairs; 

Information; 

Latin- American  Affairs; 

Mexican  Affairs; 

Near-Eastern  Affairs; 

Western-European  Affairs. 
Translators. 
Assistant  Solicitors. 

Private  Secretary  to  the  Secretary  of  State. 
Law  Clerks. 
Confidential  Clerk  to  the  Secretary  of  State. 


ORGANIZATION  OF  DEPARTMENTS      71 

It  would  be  extremely  tiresome  to  go  through  all  the 
departments  in  this  manner,  and  the  general  organization 
of  each  will  appear  from  the  duties  it  performs. 

The  character  of  the  duties  assigned  to  the  assistant 
secretaries  differs  somewhat  in  the  various  departments, 
but  as  a  rule  they  have  entire  direction  of  specified 
branches  of  the  work  and  in  many  departments  enjoy  a 
great  measure  of  independence. 

The  duties  of  the  chief  clerk  are  practically  the  same 
in  every  department.  He  is  the  executive  officer  of  the 
department  under  the  Secretary,  and  his  position  is  one 
of  great  importance.  It  was  a  matter  of  frequent  occur- 
rence in  the  early  days  of  the  Government  for  the  chief 
clerk  to  become  Acting  Secretary  during  the  temporary 
absence  or  upon  a  vacancy  in  the  office  of  the  Secretary. 
At  present  the  chief  clerk  has  the  general  supervision 
of  the  clerks  and  employees,  and  of  the  business  of  the 
department.  Each  clerk  is  required  to  record  the  time 
of  his  daily  arrival  and  departure  from  the  department, 
and  at  the  end  of  the  month  these  reports  are  filed  with 
the  chief  clerk.  It  is  the  rule  in  most  of  the  departments 
that  no  clerk  is  allowed  to  leave  the  building  during 
office  hours  without  express  permission  of  the  chief  clerk, 
who  is  thus  in  a  position  to  know  at  all  times  what  force 
he  has  available  for  the  extra  work  that  the  exigencies 
of  the  service  may  at  any  time  call  for.  After  the  daily 
mail  is  opened  and  indexed  by  the  proper  persons,  it  is 
the  practice  in  most  of  the  departments  to  have  it  read 
by  the  chief  clerk  and  distributed  by  him  to  the  assistant 
secretaries,  or  otherwise  dealt  with,  and  in  the  same  way 


72  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

all  letters  written  by  the  department  come  under  his 
supervision.  He  has  also  supervision  of  the  various  pub- 
lications of  the  department  and  control  and  oversight 
of  its  property. 

The  great  body  of  clerks  in  the  various  bureaus  and 
divisions  are  all  subjected  to  some  sort  of  examination 
before  being  employed  by  the  Government,  and  a  large 
part  of  them  are  subject  to  the  rules  of  the  so-called 
"classified  service."  This  classification  has  steadily 
grown  in  importance.  Sections  163  and  164  of  the  Re- 
vised Statutes  provided  for  the  arrangement  of  clerks  in 
four  classes,  distinguished  as  the  first,  second,  third,  and 
fourth  class,  and  for  the  examination  and  qualification 
of  these  clerks  before  their  appointment. 

These  sections  are  superseded  by  the  Civil  Service 
Act  of  January  16,  1883, l  which  makes  more  compre- 
hensive provisions  for  examinations  for  testing  the  fit- 
ness of  applicants  for  the  public  service,  and  for  appoint- 
ments and  promotions  as  the  result  of  such  examinations. 
By  this  act  the  United  States  Civil-Service  Commission 
was  established,  to  consist  of  three  commissioners,  not 
more  than  two  of  whom  shall  be  adherents  of  the  same 
party.  These  commissioners  are  to  be  appointed  by  the 
President  by  and  with  the  advice  and  consent  of  the 
Senate.  The  act  retains  the  old  classification  of  clerks, 
and  makes  minute  regulations  as  to  the  manner  and 
modes  of  conducting  examinations,  and  for  making  ap- 
pointments and  promotions  from  the  lists  of  successful 
competitors.  It  is  only  necessary  for  our  purpose  to  note 
1  22  U.S.  Stat.  L.  403. 


ORGANIZATION  OF  DEPARTMENTS      73 

that  some  examination  is  necessary  for  almost  all  per- 
sons in  the  government  service,  and  that  for  those 
classifications  of  clerks  that  have  been  placed  by  the 
President  or  by  the  law  itself  in  the  classified  service,  the 
regulations  are  carefully  provided  in  order  to  secure  the 
most  efficient  service  to  the  Government. 

There  were  395,460  positions  in  the  executive  civil 
service  on  June  30,  1912,  according  to  statistics  based 
upon  reports  to  the  Commission,  of  which  236,061  were 
classified  subject  to  competitive  examination  under  the 
civil-service  rules.  The  number  of  classified  positions 
was  increased  by  about  20,000  by  the  classification  of 
artisans  in  the  navy-yard  service  under  executive  order 
of  December  7,  1912.  Persons  employed  merely  as 
laborers  or  workmen  and  persons  nominated  for  con- 
firmation by  the  Senate  are  exempted  from  the  require- 
ments of  classification.  Within  these  limits  certain 
classes  of  positions  are  excepted  from  examination  — 
among  them,  Indians  in  the  Indian  service,  attorneys, 
pension  examining  surgeons,  field  deputy  marshals,  and 
a  few  employees  whose  duties  are  of  an  important  con- 
fidential or  fiduciary  nature.  By  an  executive  order  of 
October  15, 1912,  the  President  classified  all  fourth-class 
post-offices  not  before  classified,  the  number  being  36,236. 

Various  examinations  are  held  in  every  State  and 
Territory  at  least  twice  a  year.  The  examinations  range 
in  scope  from  technical,  professional,  or  scientific  sub- 
jects to  those  based  wholly  upon  the  physical  condition 
and  experience  of  the  applicant,  and  in  some  cases  do 
not  require  ability  to  read  or  write.   During  the  fiscal 


74  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

year  ended  June  30, 1912, 33,240  persons  were  appointed 
through  examinations,  including  12,807  navy-yard  em- 
ployees. 

The  salaries  of  all  persons  in  the  service  of  the  depart- 
ments are  provided  by  law,  from  those  of  the  Secretaries 
to  those  of  the  lowest  grade  of  laborers.  It  was  pro- 
vided that  the  heads  of  departments  should  receive 
an  annual  emolument  of  $10,000/ but  by  the  Act  of 
January  20, 1847,  this  was  reduced  to  $8000,  and  by  the 
Act  of  March  4, 1911,  increased  to  $12,000,  which  is  the 
present  salary  of  all  cabinet  officers.  The  assistant  secre- 
taries receive  from  $4000  to  $6000.  The  clerks  of  the 
fourth  class  are  allowed  $1800,  while  those  of  the  third, 
second,  and  first  classes  receive  respectively  $1600, 
$1400,  and  $1200.  The  lowest  grade  of  employees  are 
classed  as  laborers  and  are  paid  $720.  The  salaries  of 
chief  clerks,  commissioners,  and  others  vary  from  $2000 
to  $6000. 

Many  details  of  general  departmental  regulations  are 
provided  by  the  Revised  Statutes  of  the  United  States, 
but  the  only  remaining  matter  of  interest  is  the  provi- 
sion that  legal  advice  is  to  be  had  by  the  heads  of  the 
departments  only  from  the  Attorney-General.2  The 
remaining  matters  of  organization  and  regulations  are 
best  seen  by  examining  the  departments  separately. 

I  am  indebted  to  Hon.  John  A.  Mcllhenny,  President 

of  the  United  States  Civil  Service  Commission,  for  the 

following  information  as  to  the  civil  service  on  February 

15,  1915.  The  extent  of  the  executive  civil  service  is  as 

i  U.S.  Rev.  Stat.,  sec.  160.  2  Ibid.,  sec.  187. 


ORGANIZATION  OF  DEPARTMENTS      75 

follows,  based  upon  reports  furnished  by  the  several  de- 
partments, to  the  Commission.  Owing  to  inaccuracies 
in  this  method  of  reporting  and  inadvertent  omissions, 
the  figures  must  be  accepted  as  only  approximate.  On 
June  30, 1914,  there  were  482,721  officers  and  employees 
in  the  executive  civil  service.  Of  these,  292,460  held 
positions  subject  to  competitive  examination  under  the 
civil-service  rules,  an  increase  of  9863  during  the  year. 
Of  the  190,261  persons  whose  positions  are  not  sub- 
ject to  competitive  examination  under  the  civil-service 
rules,  10,652  are  presidential  appointees,  8650  being 
postmasters  of  the  first,  second,  and  third  classes;  5042 
are  clerks  in  charge  of  contract  postal  stations;  73,000 
are  clerks  in  third  and  fourth  class  post-offices;  7910  are 
mail  messengers;  12,532  are  star-route,  steamboat,  and 
screen- wagon  contractors;  4641  are  pension  examining 
surgeons;  28,605  are  engaged  on  the  Isthmian  Canal 
work,  chiefly  as  laborers  and  minor  employees;  729  are 
employees  of  the  Department  of  Commerce,  mostly  of 
the  Census  Bureau;  and  26,339  are  unclassified  laborers 
not  elsewhere  herein  enumerated,  of  whom  6500  are 
subject  to  tests  of  physical  fitness  under  labor  regula- 
tions. The  remaining  20,811  are  excepted  from  exami- 
nation under  Schedule  B  of  the  civil-service  rules,  of 
whom  1069  are  employed  in  Washington  and  the  others 
in  branches  of  the  field  service.  Few  important  posi- 
tions are  excepted  from  competitive  examination  under 
Schedules  A  and  B.  Their  great  variety  will  be  seen  by 
reference  to  those  schedules. 


CHAPTER  VII 

FUNCTIONS   OF   THE   EXECUTIVE   DEPARTMENTS   IN 

MAINTAINING   A    "MORE   PERFECT   UNION" 

THE  DEPARTMENTS    OF    STATE,    THE 

TREASURY,    AND   THE   INTERIOR 

We  have  considered  the  constitutional  authority  for 
the  executive  administration,  and  the  manner  in  which 
Congress  has  from  time  to  time  provided  for  the  needs 
of  this  administration  by  the  establishment  of  the  vari- 
ous departments.  We  have  also  examined  the  status  of 
the  heads  of  the  departments,  collectively  as  an  Advi- 
sory Council,  or  Cabinet,  and  individually  as  executive 
agents  in  control  of  separate  divisions  of  the  administra- 
tion. I  have  attempted  to  give  some  idea  of  the  general 
organization  of  these  independent  divisions.  In  the  re- 
maining chapters,  I  shall  endeavor  to  show  the  scope  of 
the  Government's  administration,  and  the  methods  it 
employs  in  fulfilling  its  functions.  In  order  to  do  this, 
we  will  take  up  the  departments  separately,  and  indicate 
what  their  duties  are  and  how  discharged.  It  will  be  im- 
possible to  go  into  the  historical  development  of  the 
various  functions,  for  this  would  include  a  large  part 
of  the  history  of  the  nation,  and  it  will,  therefore,  be 
necessary  to  pass  over  many  things  that  invite  careful 
study.  The  circumstances  attending  the  various  treaties 
concluded  under  the  direction  of  the  Department  of 
State;  the  results  of  the  many  arbitrations  it  has  ar- 


STATE,  TREASURY,  INTERIOR  77 

ranged;  the  results  of  the  work  of  the  War  Department 
in  engineering  matters;  the  results  of  the  labors  of  the 
Geological  and  Coast  Survey,  —  all  these  fill  many 
volumes  of  reports  and  furnish  much  matter  of  interest 
to  the  student  of  history  and  government.  We  shall 
have  to  pass  them  by,  however,  with  such  brief  notice 
as  will  suffice  to  make  them  intelligible  as  illustrations  of 
what  has  been  accomplished  by  the  working  of  the  ad- 
ministrative machine  whose  mechanism  we  are  exam- 
ining. 

We  have  already  seen  that  there  are  ten  executive 
departments,  in  the  order  in  which  they  are  at  present 
ranked,1  —  State,  Treasury,  War,  Justice,  Post-Office, 
Navy,  Interior,  Agriculture,  Commerce,  Labor.  Each 
of  these  executive  departments  performs  certain  func- 
tions of  the  Federal  Executive.  It  is  impossible  to  make 
a  rigid  classification  of  the  functions  of  the  Executive 
they  perform,  but  it  has  seemed  to  me,  taking  the  pre- 
amble to  the  Constitution  as  a  guide  to  the  functions  of 
the  Executive,  that  the  work  of  these  ten  departments 
falls  into  four  divisions.  The  Departments  of  State,  the 
Treasury,  and  the  Interior  deal  with  foreign  and  do- 
mestic relations  and  the  finances  of  the  Government 
itself.  I  have,  therefore,  considered  them  together  under 
the  title  of  this  chapter,  "Functions  of  the  Executive 
Departments  in  Maintaining  a  'More  Perfect  Union.' " 
The  work  done  by  these  three  departments  is  necessary 
for  the  existence  of  the  United  States  as  a  nation;  it 
must  have  funds;  it  must  have  dealings  with  its  neigh- 
1  Congressional  Directory,  December,  1914. 


78  THE   FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

bors;  and  it  must  look  out  for  its  public  lands  and  other 
internal  matters.  The  Departments  of  War,  the  Navy, 
and  Justice  are  all  for  the  purpose  of  "insuring  domestic 
tranquillity."  The  first  two  departments  are  primarily 
for  the  purpose  of  providing  a  common  defense  against 
foreign  enemies,  although  the  War  Department  in  the 
Civil  War,  and  in  the  occasional  use  of  regular  troops  in 
case  of  internal  disorder,  protected  the  people  of  the 
nation  from  internal  disintegration  and  turmoil.  The 
Department  of  Justice  devotes  itself  to  the  preservation 
of  that  portion  of  domestic  tranquillity  which  is  not 
provided  for  through  the  police  and  legal  departments  of 
the  States.  I  shall  discuss  these  three  departments  in 
the  same  chapter.  The  Departments  of  Agriculture,  of 
Commerce,  and  of  Labor  will  be  considered  under  a 
chapter  entitled,  "Functions  of  the  Executive  Depart- 
ments in  'Promoting  the  General  Welfare.'"  We  have 
thus  classified  all  of  the  ten  departments  except  that  of 
the  Post-Office.  I  have  already  pointed  out  that  as  a 
purely  governmental  function,  the  Post-Office  is  an 
anomaly.  It,  however,  in  terms  of  the  preamble  to  the 
Constitution,  devotes  itself  most  certainly  to  securing 
for  the  people  of  the  United  States  certain  of  "the  bless- 
ings of  liberty."  Unlike  the  Departments  of  Agriculture, 
of  Commerce,  and  of  Labor,  it  does  not  promote  the 
general  welfare  of  any  one  element  of  national  prosper- 
ity. It  is  not  necessary  like  the  Departments  of  State, 
the  Treasury,  and  the  Interior,  for  the  maintenance 
of  the  Government  itself,  nor  is  it  necessary,  like  the 
Departments  of  War,  the  Navy,  and  Justice,  for  the 


STATE,  TREASURY,  INTERIOR  79 

protection  either  of  the  Government  or  the  individual 
citizen.  Primarily,  with  its  means  of  transporting  intel- 
ligence and  its  banking  facilities  of  money  orders  and 
savings  banks,  it  is  a  convenience  to  the  individual 
citizen  as  well  as  to  the  Government  itself,  and  may  be 
regarded  more  as  a  "blessing  of  liberty"  than  as  an 
essential  to  securing  or  protecting  the  Union,  a  luxury 
of  liberty  rather  than  a  necessity  of  liberty. 

We  will  first  consider  the  foreign  relations  of  the 
United  States  as  cared  for  by  the  State  Department. 

The  Government  of  the  United  States  is  in  intimate 
relation  with  twenty  American  Republics,  and  there  are 
at  Washington  more  diplomatic  representatives  of  for- 
eign countries  than  in  any  other  capital.  In  the  period 
from  1896  to  1909  the  foreign  trade  of  this  country  had 
been  growing  from  $1,662,331,612  to  the  enormous  total 
of  $2,950,275,817,  an  increase  of  seventy-eight  per  cent. 
This  increase  in  trade  alone  greatly  added  to  the  work 
of  the  diplomatic  and  consular  offices  of  the  Depart- 
ment. The  war  with  Spain  had  marked  a  new  epoch  in 
the  history  of  American  foreign  relations,  and  the  State 
Department  was  called  upon  to  deal  with  a  multitude  of 
questions  with  which  before  it  had  not  been  concerned. 
A  reorganization  of  the  department  was  imperatively 
demanded  by  reason  of  its  greatly  increased  functions. 
The  Hague  Conferences,  boundary  adjustments,  arbitra- 
tions, and  the  efforts  of  the  United  States  to  improve 
conditions  in  Central  America  were  among  the  active 
duties  of  the  department.  The  increasing  number  of 
questions  arising  from  the  development  of  Mexico  and 


80  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

the  protection  of  interests  of  nearly  forty  thousand  of  our 
citizens  who  had  temporarily  taken  up  their  residence 
and  invested  nearly  $1,000,000,000  of  American  money 
in  that  country,  together  with  the  general  increase  in  the 
work  of  the  department,  caused  its  reorganization  under 
the  direction  of  Secretary  Root  in  1909.  In  this  reorgan- 
ization there  were  created  in  the  department  a  number 
of  new  officials  and  divisions.  The  posts  of  Counsel  for 
the  Department  and  Resident  Diplomatic  Officer  were 
posts  of  importance  that  were  added  to  the  department. 
The  post  of  Counselor,  under  the  Administration  of 
President  Wilson  and  the  secretaryship  of  Mr.  Bryan, 
assumed  added  importance  in  the  fact  that  by  the  prac- 
tice adopted,  the  Counselor,  rather  than  the  First  As- 
sistant Secretary  of  State,  becomes  Acting  Secretary  of 
State  in  the  absence  of  that  officer.  A  Division  of  Wes- 
tern-European Affairs,  one  of  Near-Eastern  Affairs, 
and  various  other  divisions  and  bureaus  were  created 
in  the  department. 

Aside  from  the  time  and  attention  required  by  his 
general  duties  to  the  President,  as  a  member  of  the 
Cabinet,  involving  many  questions  of  domestic  policy, 
the  Secretary  of  State  is  primarily  responsible  for  the 
conduct  of  foreign  relations.  He  has  charge  of  all  mat- 
ters relating  to  the  public  Ministers  and  Consuls  of  the 
United  States,  and  with  the  representatives  of  foreign 
powers  accredited  to  it,  and  to  negotiations  of  every 
character  relating  to  foreign  affairs.  He  is  also  the 
medium  of  correspondence  between  the  President  and 
the  chief  executives  of  the  several  States,  and  has  cus- 


STATE,  TREASURY,  INTERIOR  81 

tody  of  the  Great  Seal,  which  he  affixes  to  all  executive 
proclamations,  to  various  commissions,  and  to  warrants 
for  the  extradition  of  fugitives  from  justice.  He  is  also 
the  custodian  of  the  treaties  made  with  foreign  states, 
and  of  the  laws  of  the  United  States,  and  the  Depart- 
ment of  State  grants  and  issues  passports  and  ex- 
equaturs to  foreign  consuls  in  the  United  States.  The 
immigration  into  this  country  increased  from  343,267 
in  1896  to  751,786  in  1909.  The  emigration  increased 
from  329,558  in  1896  to  586,452  in  1909.  Every  immi- 
grant coming  to  this  country,  and  every  American  citi- 
zen going  to  a  foreign  country,  in  one  way  or  another  is 
likely  to  cause  work  for  the  Department  of  State. 

The  personnel  of  the  organization  of  the  Department 
of  State  has  been  given  in  detail  in  Chapter  VI.  The 
work  of  the  department  is  chiefly  conducted  through  its 
four  principal  divisions,  —  Latin-American  Affairs,  Far- 
Eastern  Affairs,  Near-Eastern  Affairs,  Western-Euro- 
pean Affairs,  —  its  Division  of  Information,  the  Diplo- 
matic Bureau,  the  Consular  Bureau,  and  the  Bureau  of 
Citizenship.  Bureaus  of  Appointment,  of  Indexes  and 
Archives,  of  Accounts,  of  Rolls  and  library,  and  of  In- 
formation are  subsidiary  elements  in  the  work  of  the 
department.  In  addition  to  the  general  direction  of  the 
Department  of  State,  the  Secretary  personally  receives 
the  representatives  of  foreign  countries  for  the  discussion 
of  diplomatic  business  and  is  in  touch  with  the  Com- 
mittee on  Foreign  Relations  of  the  Senate. 

The  office  of  the  Assistant  Secretary,  which  corre- 
sponds to  that  of  Under-Secretary  or  Vice-Minister  for 


82  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

Foreign  Affairs  in  foreign  offices,  has  also  general  direc- 
tion of  the  department  under  the  Secretary.  The  prac- 
tice as  to  departmental  duties  varies  in  different  Admin- 
istrations, but  as  a  general  rule  the  Assistant  Secretary 
does  not  specialize,  but  holds  himself  in  readiness  to 
take  the  place  of  the  Secretary  in  general  matters  of 
direction.  The  Second  Assistant  Secretary  of  State  is 
charged  with  detailed  treatment  of  diplomatic  and  po- 
litical questions,  while  the  administrative  work  of  the 
diplomatic  service  as  distinguished  from  the  treatment 
of  subjects  of  international  intercourse,  is  delegated  to 
the  Third  Assistant  Secretary  of  State.  The  Counselor 
devotes  himself  to  the  study  of  pending  diplomatic 
questions,  but  as  I  have  indicated,  under  the  present 
Administration,  is  sometimes  called  upon  to  assume  the 
duties  of  the  Secretary  in  his  absence.  Before  Secretary 
Lansing  succeeded  Mr.  Bryan,  he  performed  most  im- 
portant functions  as  Counselor. 

The  Division  of  Latin-American  Affairs  has  charge  of 
all  diplomatic  and  consular  questions  relating  to  Mexico, 
Central  and  South  America,  and  the  West  Indies.  As 
an  index  of  the  amount  of  its  work  it  may  be  noted  that 
it  annually  prepares  more  than  nine  thousand  communi- 
cations, such  as  instructions  to  diplomatic  and  consular 
offices  by  mail  and  telegraph,  and  notes  to  diplomatic 
and  consular  representatives  of  other  governments.  It 
deals  with  such  questions  as  the  obtaining  permission  in 
Mexico  for  the  construction  of  such  work  as  that  of  the 
Colorado  River  projects,  the  settlement  of  such  mining 
cases  as  the  Rincon  Mine  Company's  case,  enforcement 


STATE,  TREASURY,  INTERIOR  83 

of  the  neutrality  laws,  the  release  of  Americans  charged 
with  various  offenses,  and  all  matters  generally  arising 
in  the  ordinary  intercourse  of  American  citizens  and  the 
Mexican  Government.  In  Haiti,  the  State  Department 
has  at  times  exercised  a  large  sphere  of  influence,  among 
its  most  important  achievements  being  that  of  securing 
participation  of  American  financiers  in  the  recent  finan- 
cial adjustment  of  Haitian  affairs.  In  Venezuela  there 
have  been  such  matters  as  the  settlement  of  the  Orinoco 
Company's  cases  against  Venezuela  for  $385,000,  pend- 
ing since  1890,  and  the  settlement  of  various  other  claims 
of  American  interests.  The  Division  of  Latin-American 
Affairs  is  one  of  the  most  important  divisions  in  the 
State  Department,  and  will  become  increasingly  im- 
portant as  our  relations  with  Mexico  and  Central  and 
South  America  grow  stronger. 

The  Division  of  Far-Eastern  Affairs  has  charge  of 
matters  relating  to  Japan,  China,  Siberia,  Hongkong, 
French  Indo-China,  Siam,  the  Straits  Settlements, 
Borneo,  East  Indies,  India,  and  in  general  the  Far  East. 
As  examples  of  subjects  studied  by  the  Division  of  Far- 
Eastern  Affairs  there  may  be  cited  matters  concerning 
the  policy  of  that  division,  tending  to  the  cooperation  of 
the  United  States  with  the  other  great  Powers  in  relation 
to  the  political  integrity  of  China  and  the  "open  door" 
of  equality  of  commercial  opportunity.  Such  matters  as 
the  protection  of  American  missionaries  and  the  general 
protection  of  American  interests  constantly  occupy  the 
attention  of  this  division. 

The  Division  of  Near-Eastern  Affairs  relates  to  Ger- 


84  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

many,  Austria-Hungary,  Russia,  Roumania,  Servia,  Bul- 
garia, Montenegro,  Turkey,  Greece,  Italy,  Abyssinia, 
Persia,  Egypt,  and  colonies  belonging  to  countries  of 
this  series.  This  is  naturally  a  very  important  division. 
Railway  concessions  in  Turkey,  the  diplomatic  aspects 
of  the  potash  controversy  with  Germany,  questions  re- 
lating to  the  treatment  of  American  Jews  in  Russia,  and 
similar  matters  fall  into  the  province  of  this  division. 
The  remaining  division  of  the  State  Department  is  that 
of  Western-European  Affairs,  and  deals  with  matters  re- 
lating to  Great  Britain  (Canada,  Australia,  New  Zea- 
land, and  British  colonies  not  elsewhere  enumerated), 
Portugal,  Spain,  France,  Morocco,  Belgium,  the  Congo, 
Switzerland,  Norway,  Sweden,  the  Netherlands,  Lux- 
emburg, Denmark,  and  Liberia.  All  sorts  of  questions 
come  before  this  division,  but  in  the  main  it  is  sufficient 
to  say  that  it  deals  with  all  international  questions  be- 
tween the  United  States  and  the  countries  in  that  divi- 
sion, relating  to  the  rights  of  the  United  States  or  to  the 
rights  of  any  of  its  citizens. 

The  above  is,  I  fear,  a  not  especially  interesting  de- 
scription of  the  functions  of  the  State  Department,  but 
it  is  impossible  to  condense  in  a  few  pages  an  any  more 
instructive  account  of  its  work.  There  is  no  department 
in  the  Government  which  deals  with  more  interesting 
questions.  They  are  most  essentially  human  questions, 
affecting  the  relations  between  nations  and  individual 
men,  and  concerning  such  dealings  only  detailed  ac- 
counts can  portray  their  living  interests.  The  seizure  by 
English  cruisers  of  American  vessels  as  carriers  of  contra- 


STATE,  TREASURY,  INTERIOR    85 

band  articles  during  the  present  European  war,  the 
rights  of  neutral  vessels  in  the  North  Sea,  and  hundreds 
of  vital  and  important  questions  for  the  State  Depart- 
ment arise  from  this  great  international  conflict.  All  I 
am  attempting  to  do  is  to  indicate  in  a  general  way  the 
duties  of  the  department,  and  it  is  impossible  for  me  to 
stray  into  the  alluring  realms  of  diplomatic  history.  It 
is  not  improper  to  say,  however,  that  although  much  of 
great  interest  has  been  written  of  the  diplomatic  history 
of  this  country,  there  are  still  unexplored  fields  in  the 
archives  of  the  State  Department  inviting  the  work  of 
the  student  in  American  history.1 

The  heads  of  most  of  the  executive  departments  make 
their  annual  reports  of  the  work  of  their  departments  to 
the  President,  who  transmits  them  to  Congress.  As  I 
have  already  pointed  out,  the  Treasury  Department  in 
its  organization  differs  in  a  number  of  particulars  from 
the  departments  that  were  created  coincidently  with  it, 
War  and  State.  The  management  of  the  finances  of 
the  Government  seemed  to  the  members  of  the  First 
Congress  and  to  the  men  who  formulated  the  plans  for 
the  Treasury  Department  of  such  great  importance  that 

1  President  Wilson,  in  Cleveland,  on  January  29,  1916,  stated 
the  policy  of  the  United  States  as  follows:  "America  has  not  only 
to  assert  her  rights  to  her  own  life  within  her  own  borders,  but  she 
has  to  assert  the  right  of  equal  and  just  treatment  of  her  citizens 
wherever  they  go.  And  she  has  something  more  than  that  to  insist 
upon,  because  she  has  made  up  her  mind  long  ago  that  she  is  going 
to  stand,  so  far  as  this  whole  Western  Hemisphere  is  concerned,  for 
the  right  of  people  to  choose  their  own  policies  without  foreign  in- 
fluence or  interference."  In  the  first  instance,  the  carrying-out  of 
this  generally  accepted  policy  falls  upon  the  State  Department. 


86  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

Congress  was  given  some  control  over  the  Treasury, 
whereas  it  had  none  over  the  other  departments. 

The  work  of  the  Treasury  Department  has  assumed 
enormous  proportions.  This  can  be  noted  in  no  more 
striking  manner  than  by  an  examination  of  the  estimates 
of  government  disbursements  for  the  fiscal  year  ending 
June  30,  1914.  In  his  report  for  the  fiscal  year  ending 
June  30,  1912,  Secretary  MacVeagh  placed  the  above 
appropriations  at  $732,556,023.03.  These  estimates 
were  exclusive  of  those  for  expenditures  for  the  Panama 
Canal,  which  were  to  be  paid  from  bond  sales,  and  those 
of  the  postal  service,  which  were  to  be  repaid  from  postal 
receipts.  The  estimated  expenditures  for  the  Panama 
Canal  for  the  same  period  are  $30,174,432.11.  The  or- 
dinary receipts  during  the  current  fiscal  year  of  1913 
were  estimated  at  $711,000,000,  and  the  ordinary  dis- 
bursements at  $670,800,000,  showing  an  expected  ex- 
cess of  receipts  of  $40,200,000.  It  may  be  interesting  to 
notice  some  of  the  elements  of  receipts  and  some  of  the 
elements  of  disbursements  for  the  year  1913  in  order 
to  see  from  what  sources  the  Government  realizes  its 
enormous  revenues  and  for  what  purposes  these  moneys 
are  expended.  Of  these  estimated  receipts  $328,000,000 
were  expected  from  customs;  $297,000,000  from  internal 
revenue  taxes,  —  that  is  to  say  from  taxes  on  spirits, 
oleomargarine,  etc. ;  $29,000,000,  from  the  tax  on  the  net 
income  of  corporations;  and  $57,000,000  from  miscella- 
neous sources.  Of  the  estimated  expenditures  from  these 
receipts,  $177,000,000  was  for  the  civil  establishment  of 
the  Government,  including  all  expenses  of  Congress,  the 


STATE,  TREASURY,  INTERIOR  87 

executive  departments,  etc.;  $158,000,000  for  the  War 
Department;  $130,000,000  for  the  Navy  Department; 
$18,000,000  for  the  Indian  service;  $22,800,000  for  in- 
terest on  the  public  debt;  and  $165,000,000  for  pensions. 
It  will  be  noted  that  the  amount  paid  in  pensions  nearly 
equals  the  cost  of  the  maintenance  of  the  civil  estab- 
lishment of  the  Government. 

As  to  this  enormous  sum  for  pensions,  it  is  interesting 
to  note  the  comment  made  by  former  President  Taft 
upon  the  subject  of  pensions  in  his  "Popular  Govern- 
ment," published  by  the  Yale  University  Press  in  1913. 
On  page  524,  he  says:  "Those  pensions  are  not  properly 
a  part  of  the  expense  of  the  military  system  of  the 
United  States  and  ought  not  to  play  a  part  in  determin- 
ing the  expenses  of  our  present  army  and  navy.  They 
are  due  to  our  not  having  an  adequate  army  ready  in 
the  past.  Certain  it  is  that  the  larger  army  and  navy  we 
maintain,  the  less  in  size  will  be  our  pension  list  after 
another  war,  should  we  have  one,  because  the  more 
adequate  provision  we  make  for  a  prompt  and  active 
campaign,  the  less  men  we  shall  enlist  and  the  less  their 
loss  of  life  and  limb." 

It  is  necessary  to  call  attention  to  the  above  receipts 
and  expenditures  of  the  Government  in  order  that  the 
usual  well-informed  American  may  realize  that  the 
Treasury  Department  has  much  more  important  duties 
than  the  opening  of  travelers'  trunks  upon  their  return 
from  a  summer  vacation  in  Europe,  or  the  laundering  of 
bank-notes.  The  latter  function  of  the  Treasury  De- 
partment has  created  considerable  interest  and  some 


88  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

amusement  throughout  the  country;  but  this  reform,  by 
which  old  notes  are  literally  washed,  dried,  and  ironed, 
has  been  estimated  to  mean  a  saving  to  the  Government 
of  more  than  $500,000  a  year. 

The  principal  officers  of  the  Treasury  Department  are 
the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  and  his  three  Assistant 
Secretaries,  the  Comptroller  of  the  Treasury,  the  Treas- 
urer of  the  United  States,  and  the  Comptroller  of  the 
Currency.  There  are  also  among  the  important  officers 
of  the  department,  the  Supervising  Architect,  the  Au- 
ditors for  the  various  departments,  the  Register  of  the 
Treasury,  the  Director  of  the  Mint,  and  the  Commis- 
sioner of  Internal  Revenue.  By  the  act  of  Congress 
creating  the  department,  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury 
is  charged  with  the  management  of  the  national  finances. 
It  is  his  business  to  prepare  plans  for  the  realization  of 
revenue  and  for  the  maintenance  of  the  public  credit. 
He  superintends  the  collection  of  the  revenue,  and 
directs  the  forms  of  keeping  and  rendering  public  ac- 
counts; grants  warrants  for  all  moneys  drawn  from  the 
Treasury  in  pursuance  of  appropriations,  and  for  the 
payment  of  moneys  into  the  Treasury,  and  in  the  form 
I  have  indicated  above  submits  annually  to  Congress 
estimates  of  the  probable  revenues  and  disbursements 
of  the  Government.  The  work  of  the  department,  there- 
fore, consists  principally  in  collecting  and  disbursing 
money.  It  also,  through  the  Mint  and  the  Bureau  of 
Engraving  and  Printing,  issues  the  coin  and  notes  which 
are  the  legal  medium  of  exchange  and  are  commonly 
called  "  money." 


STATE,  TREASURY,  INTERIOR    89 

The  revenues  of  the  Government  are  derived  chiefly 
from  the  customs  duties  on  articles  imported  into  the 
United  States,  and  from  the  taxes  upon  spirits,  tobacco, 
oleomargarine,  etc.,  known  as  internal  revenue.  For 
the  collection  of  these  two  sources  of  revenue,  the  United 
States  is  divided  into  territorial  districts.  There  are  a 
certain  number  of  internal-revenue  districts  and  a  cer- 
tain number  of  ports  of  entry  through  which  goods  may 
be  brought  into  the  United  States,  and  where,  through 
the  collectors  of  the  port,  the  customs  duties  may  be 
paid.  The  Treasury  Department,  therefore,  has  a  type 
of  territorial  organization,  and  in  this  particular  it  re- 
sembles the  Department  of  Justice,  which  divides  the 
United  States  into  federal  districts  for  the  purpose  of 
administering  the  laws  of  the  United  States.  At  the 
present  time  the  War  Department  has  a  very  meager 
territorial  organization.  In  time  I  believe  that  the 
United  States  will  be  divided  into  military  districts  re- 
sembling those  of  the  corps  districts  in  Germany  and 
other  nations  that  maintain  an  adequate  military  es- 
tablishment, but  at  the  present  time  it  is  to  be  noted 
that  the  Treasury  Department  and  the  Department  of 
Justice  are  the  only  two  departments  that  have  divided 
the  United  States  into  districts  for  the  practical  pur- 
pose of  administration. 

There  are  three  Assistant  Secretaries  of  the  Treasury. 
All  three  of  these  are  in  charge  of  various  avenues  of 
income  and  disbursement.  The  Assistant  Secretary  in 
charge  of  customs,  controls  all  matters  pertaining  to 
the  customs  service.  Another  Assistant  Secretary  is  in 


90  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

charge  of  certain  fiscal  bureaus  and  has  supervision  of 
all  matters  relating  to  the  Bureau  of  the  Mint,  the 
Bureau  of  Engraving  and  Printing,  the  Office  of  the 
Treasurer  of  the  United  States,  the  Office  of  the  Comp- 
troller of  the  Currency,  the  Office  of  the  Comptroller  of 
the  Treasury,  the  Auditors  of  the  several  departments, 
the  Register  of  the  Treasury,  the  Secret-Service  Divi- 
sion, the  Division  of  Public  Moneys,  the  Division  of 
Loans  and  Currency,  the  Division  of  Bookkeeping  and 
Warrants,  the  Bureau  of  Internal  Revenue,  the  Divi- 
sion of  Printing  and  Stationery,  the  Division  of  Mail 
and  Files,  and  the  Office  of  the  Disbursing  Clerk.  The 
remaining  Assistant  Secretary  is  in  charge  of  certain 
miscellaneous  divisions  of  the  Department  and  super- 
vises matters  relating  to  the  public  health  service,  the 
Supervising  Architect,  the  selection  of  sites  for  public 
buildings,  the  revenue-cutter  service,  life-saving  serv- 
ice (the  last  two  were  consolidated,  January  28,  1915, 
as  the  Coast  Guard),  appointments,  and  the  bond  divi- 
sion. If  we  consider  the  matters  coming  under  the  direc- 
tion of  each  of  the  Secretaries,  we  shall  gain  a  general 
understanding  of  the  functions  of  the  Department. 

Since  the  foundation  of  the  Government  the  question 
of  the  tariff  has  been  one  of  the  most  important  ques- 
tions of  national  policy.  The  necessity  for  a  central 
government  became  apparent  after  the  Revolution  pri- 
marily for  a  proper  treatment  of  customs  duties,  and 
such  has  been  the  history  of  the  confederation  of  many 
nations.  The  regulations  upon  which  goods  may  be  im- 
ported and  exported  from  one  State  into  another  affect 


STATE,  TREASURY,  INTERIOR  91 

most  vitally  the  business  of  each  of  these  communities, 
and  after  the  Revolution  there  existed  a  condition 
in  which  one  of  the  former  colonies  of  Great  Britain 
was  attempting  to  exact  customs  duties  from  another 
of  its  fellow  colonies.  The  collection  of  revenue  by  cus- 
toms duties  is  what  is  called  indirect  taxation,  and 
has  usually  been  considered  the  least  painful  method 
of  raising  revenue  for  the  maintenance  of  a  govern- 
ment. At  present  the  nation  is  in  the  midst  of  the 
uncertainties  which  attend  the  recent  revision  of  the 
tariff,  and  upon  the  question  of  the  fundamental  prin- 
ciples which  underlie  the  imposition  of  customs  duties 
the  people  of  the  United  States  have  always  been  di- 
vided. It  is  without  the  scope  of  this  book  to  go  into 
questions  of  the  relative  merits  of  high  or  low  protec- 
tion to  American  industries.  The  tariff  law  which  has 
recently  been  adopted  by  Congress  was  formulated  by 
the  President,  with  the  advice  of  his  Secretary  of  the 
Treasury  and  the  leaders  of  his  party  in  Congress,  to 
meet  the  demands  of  the  successful  party  in  the  last 
national  election.  The  tariff  legislation  itself  is,  there- 
fore, a  matter  of  great  executive  concern,  and  the  part 
that  President  Wilson  has  played  in  the  present  tariff 
legislation  shows  in  a  most  marked  degree  the  powerful 
position  of  the  President  under  the  present  party  sys- 
tem of  government.  It  is  a  matter  of  great  interest  to 
note  the  change  in  this  particular  since  1884,  when  Pres- 
ident Wilson  published  his  book  "  Congressional  Gov- 
ernment." In  that  book  the  President  said:  "The  mem- 
bers of  the  Cabinet  have  the  privilege  of  advising  him 


92  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

[the  President]  as  to  matters  in  most  of  which  he  has  no 
final  action  without  the  concurrence  of  the  Senate,  but 
the  gist  of  all  policy  is  decided  by  the  legislative  and 
not  the  executive  will." 

In  1884,  before  the  repeal  of  the  Tenure-of-Ofnce 
Acts,  Congress  was  the  dominating  element  in  the  Na- 
tional Government.  To-day  the  President  is  the  domi- 
nating influence  in  the  policies  of  the  nation.  President 
Wilson  foresaw  this  when  in  1900  he  wrote  the  pre- 
face to  the  fifteenth  edition  of  "Congressional  Govern- 
ment," in  which,  commenting  on  the  increased  powers 
of  the  Executive  caused  by  the  Spanish  War,  he  said: 
"It  may  be  that  the  new  leadership  of  the  Executive, 
inasmuch  as  it  is  likely  to  last,  will  have  a  very  far- 
reaching  effect  upon  our  whole  method  of  government. 
It  may  give  the  heads  of  the  executive  departments  a 
new  influence  upon  the  action  of  Congress.  It  may 
bring  about  as  a  consequence  an  integration  which  will 
substitute  statesmanship  for  government  by  mass 
meetings." 

As  to  the  actual  collection  of  customs,  it  is  only  neces- 
sary to  say  that  under  the  present  tariff  almost  every- 
thing that  is  imported  into  the  United  States  must  pay 
a  tax  and  that  the  Treasury  Department  collects  this 
tax.  For  this  purpose  at  each  port  of  entry  of  the 
United  States  there  exists  a  complicated  organization, 
the  collector  of  customs,  appraisers,  surveyors,  special 
agents,  customs  agents,  and  vessels  of  the  revenue- 
cutter  service,  which  see  to  it  that  illicit  importation  of 
goods  is  prevented. 


STATE,  TREASURY,  INTERIOR  93 

The  second  great  source  of  national  income  is  that 
from  the  internal  revenue.  The  tax  upon  the  net  income 
of  corporations  is  the  smaller  source  of  this  revenue. 
The  larger  part  of  the  income  of  the  Government  from 
this  source  comes  from  the  tax  upon  all  alcoholic  pro- 
ductions, tobacco,  and  oleomargarine.  Every  distillery 
in  the  United  States  has  attached  to  it  revenue  officers 
of  the  Government,  who  watch  carefully  all  the  proc- 
esses of  production,  and  see  to  it  that  each  barrel  of 
whiskey  or  keg  of  beer  pays  its  tax  to  the  United  States. 
The  illicit  distilleries  in  the  mountains  of  Tennessee  and 
elsewhere  have  been  the  subject  of  novels  and  are  famil- 
iar subjects  to  the  general  reader.  A  large  part  of  the 
activities  of  the  officers,  who  come  under  the  direction 
of  the  Commissioner  of  Internal  Revenue,  is  devoted  to 
the  collection  of  the  tax  on  oleomargarine.  This  is  an 
absurd  tax  and  it  is  to  be  hoped  that  in  time  Congress 
will  repeal  it.  When  it  was  first  discovered  that  there 
could  be  made  from  the  fats  of  animals  a  very  excellent 
substitute  for  butter,  great  opposition  to  the  sale  of 
the  so-called  " oleomargarine' '  arose  on  the  part  of  the 
dairymen  and  the  heavy  tax  upon  its  sale  was  imposed. 
At  the  present  time  the  Government  imposes  a  tax  of 
10  cents  per  pound  on  all  artificially  colored  oleomar- 
garine, and  a  tax  of  one  quarter  cent  per  pound  on 
oleomargarine  in  its  natural  white  or  yellow  state,  not 
made  yellow  like  butter  by  the  addition  of  artificial 
coloration.  Anybody,  with  an  old  tin  can  and  some  hot 
water  and  a  dark  room  in  a  back  cellar,  can  manufac- 
ture illicitly  what  is  sometimes  called  "moonshine  but- 


94  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

ter,"  and  thus  defraud  the  Government  out  of  nine  and 
three-quarters  cents  a  pound.  The  temptation  to  do 
this  and  the  ease  with  which  it  can  be  done  is  a  constant 
menace  to  honest  dealers  in  oleomargarine,  and  it  is  to 
be  hoped  that  the  laws  relating  to  this  form  of  internal 
revenue  will  be  modified.  In  the  above  manner  were 
obtained  most  of  the  revenues  of  the  Government  be- 
fore the  passage  of  the  act  imposing  a  tax  on  personal 
incomes  above  certain  amounts.  It  is  too  early  yet  to 
discuss  the  results  of  this  new  tax. 

All  expenditures  are  under  the  direction  of  the  Secre- 
tary of  the  Treasury.  The  Comptroller  of  the  Treasury 
and  the  various  auditors  of  the  department  supervise 
these  expenditures.  The  Comptroller  of  the  Treasury 
prescribes  the  forms  of  keeping  and  rendering  all  pub- 
lic moneys  except  those  relating  to  the  postal  revenues. 
Certain  officers  of  the  Government  are  bonded  as  dis- 
bursing officers,  and  only  disbursing  officers  can  draw 
warrants  upon  the  Treasurer  of  the  United  States  and 
expend  its  funds.  Upon  the  application  of  disbursing 
officers,  the  head  of  any  executive  department,  or  other 
independent  establishment  not  under  any  of  the  execu- 
tive departments,  the  Comptroller  of  the  Treasury  is 
required  to  render  his  advance  decision  upon  any  ques- 
tion involving  the  payment  to  be  made  by  them  or  under 
them,  which  decision,  when  rendered,  governs  the  Audi- 
tor and  the  Comptroller  in  the  settlement  of  the  ac- 
count involving  that  payment.  There  are  Auditors  for 
the  Treasury  Department,  for  the  War  Department, 
for  the  Interior  Department,  for  the  Navy  Depart- 


STATE,  TREASURY,  INTERIOR  95 

ment,  for  the  Post-Office  Department,  and  one  for  the 
"State  and  Other  Departments,"  whose  duty  is  to  re- 
ceive and  settle  all  accounts  for  the  departments  under 
their  direction. 

The  Treasurer  of  the  United  States  is  charged  with 
the  receipt  and  disbursements  of  all  public  moneys  that 
may  be  deposited  in  the  Treasury  at  Washington  or 
in  the  various  subtreasuries  in  New  York  and  various 
other  large  cities,  and  in  the  national-bank  depositories, 
and  in  addition  has  charge  of  the  actual  custody  of  the 
moneys  in  the  Treasury.  The  Comptroller  of  the  Cur- 
rency has  supervision  of  the  national  banks:  their  or- 
ganization and  examination,  and  the  preparation,  issue, 
and  redemption  of  their  notes  which  form  a  large  por- 
tion of  the  circulation  of  the  United  States.  There  has 
just  been  enacted  by  Congress  a  bill  for  the  reformation 
of  the  currency,  which  provides  for  a  new  system  of 
government  of  the  national  banks  of  the  country.  With 
the  exception  of  immediate  and  adequate  National  De- 
fense, this  and  the  recent  tariff  legislation  form  the  most 
important  questions  at  present  before  the  Government 
for  solution,  but  it  is  too  special  a  subject  for  considera- 
tion in  a  book  of  this  nature. 

From  the  above  it  will  be  seen  that  the  power  of  the 
Secretary  of  the  Treasury  is  very  great.  On  June  30, 
1912,  the  available  balance  in  the  general  fund  of  the 
United  States  Treasury  was  $167,152,478.99.  The  work- 
ing balance  in  the  vaults  of  the  Treasury  at  this  time 
was  over  $98,000,000.  The  Secretary  of  the  Treasury 
has  charge  of  the  disposition  of  these  funds,  and  what 


96  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

disposition  of  them  he  authorizes  to  be  made  is  of  the 
utmost  importance  to  the  communities  in  which  he  se- 
lects depositories  and  to  the  country  at  large.  At  the 
close  of  the  fiscal  year  ending  June  30,  1912,  there  were 
in  actual  operation  7394  national  banks  with  an  author- 
ized capital  of  $1,040,545,435.  Its  relation  to  this  enor- 
mous aggregation  of  capital  whose  activities  reach  into 
every  community  of  the  United  States  is  another  source 
of  power  for  the  Treasury  Department.  It  is  a  most  in- 
teresting commentary,  as  I  have  already  pointed  out  in 
a  previous  chapter,  upon  the  wisdom  of  the  founders  of 
the  Government  that  the  administration  of  the  national 
resources  has  been  since  its  institution  honest  and  effi- 
cient. 

According  to  the  theories  of  some  prominent  "states- 
men" of  to-day,  a  government  does  not  really  need  an 
army  and  navy  to  preserve  it,  and  although  a  police 
department  is  convenient,  it  is  not  a  necessity  of  gov- 
ernment. There  has  never,  however,  been  any  question 
that,  in  addition  to  a  treasury  and  a  department  for 
dealing  with  its  neighbors,  a  government  must  have  as 
an  essential  to  its  existence  a  proper  "Home  Affairs 
Department."  This  the  United  States  has  in  the  De- 
partment of  the  Interior,  which  we  will  now  consider. 
President  Lowell,  of  Harvard  University,  writing  of  the 
executive  departments  in  the  Government  of  England, 
says:  "The  Home  Office  is  a  kind  of  residuary  legatee. 
It  is  entrusted  with  all  the  work  of  the  secretariat  that 
has  not  been  especially  assigned  to  the  remaining  Sec- 
retaries of  State,  or  to  the  other  administrative  depart- 


STATE,  TREASURY,  INTERIOR  97 

merits.  Its  duties  are,  therefore,  of  a  somewhat  mis- 
cellaneous character."  l  These  observations  apply  with 
equal  force  to  our  Department  of  the  Interior. 

In  France  ministerial  portfolios  are  created  by  execu- 
tive decree  and  from  time  to  time  their  number  has 
varied.  In  1875  there  were  nine,  in  1879  there  were  ten, 
in  1887  there  were  eleven,  and  to-day  there  are  twelve. 
In  the  order  in  which  these  rank,  they  are  as  follows: 
(1)  Interior;  (2)  Finance;  (3)  War;  (4)  Justice  and  Pub- 
lic Worship;  (5)  Marine;  (6)  Colonies;  (7)  Public  In- 
struction; (8)  Foreign  Affairs;  (9)  Commerce;  (10) 
Agriculture;  (11)  Public  Works  and  Posts,  Telegraphs 
and  Telephones;  and  (12)  Labor.  There  are  seven  ex- 
ecutive departments  in  the  Government  of  Switzerland: 
(1)  Foreign  Affairs;  (2)  Interior;  (3)  Justice  and  Police; 
(4)  Military  Affairs;  (5)  Imposts  and  Finance;  (6)  Posts 
and  Railways;  (7)  Commerce,  Industry  and  Agricul- 
ture.2 There  are  to-day  in  the  United  States  ten  execu- 
tive departments:  (1)  State;  (2)  Treasury;  (3)  War; 
(4)  Justice;  (5)  Post-Office;  (6)  Navy;  (7)  Interior;  (8) 
Agriculture;  (9)  Commerce;  and  (10)  Labor.  It  is  im- 
possible to  make  an  accurate  comparison  of  the  divi- 
sion of  the  executive  departments  in  these  three  Repub- 
lics, since  each  has  peculiar  and  individual  necessities 
which  require  different  methods  of  treatment.  The  ex- 
ecutive departments,  however,  correspond  in  a  gen- 
eral way.  Our  Department  of  State,  which  is  really  a 
Department  of  Foreign  Affairs,  is  the  equivalent  of 

1  A.  Lawrence  Lowell,  The  Government  of  England,  vol.  I,  p.  105. 

2  Frederic  Austin  Ogg,  The  Governments  of  Europe,  pp.  312,  424. 


98  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

departments  in  France  and  Switzerland.  Our  Depart- 
ment of  the  Treasury,  in  France  goes  under  the  name 
of  "Finance,"  and  in  Switzerland,  "Imposts  and  Fi- 
nance." Our  Department  of  War,  in  France  bears  the 
same  name,  while  in  Switzerland  it  is  called,  "Military 
Affairs."  Our  Department  of  Justice  parallels  "Justice 
and  Public  Worship"  in  France  and  "Justice  and  Po- 
lice" in  Switzerland.  In  France,  the  Department  of 
Public  Works  and  Posts,  Telegraph  and  Telephone 
deals  with  a  greater  variety  of  matters  than  our  Post- 
Office,  as  also  does  the  Swiss  Department  of  Posts  and 
Railroads.  Switzerland,  having  no  means  of  naviga- 
tion, has  no  such  department  as  our  Navy  Department 
and  the  French  Ministry  of  Marine.  Each  of  the  three 
Republics  has  an  Interior  Department,  but  these  de- 
partments deal  with  rather  different  matters.  Exclu- 
sive of  these  Interior  Departments  or  Ministries,  we 
have  noted  six  departments  or  ministries  in  France  and 
five  in  Switzerland.  In  addition  to  the  Interior  Depart- 
ment, the  United  States  has  the  three  additional  De- 
partments of  Agriculture,  of  Commerce,  and  of  Labor. 
In  addition  to  the  Interior  Department,  France  has  the 
five  additional  Departments  of  Agriculture,  of  Com- 
merce, of  Labor,  of  Colonies,  and  of  Public  Instruction. 
Of  these  five  departments,  the  first  three  parallel  our 
departments  of  similar  names.  We  have  colonies,  but 
no  separate  Department  of  Colonies,  such  matters  com- 
ing under  the  jurisdiction  of  the  Secretary  of  War.  We 
have  a  Bureau  of  Education  in  the  Interior  Depart- 
ment, but  no  Ministry  or  Department  of  Public  Wor- 


STATE,  TREASURY,  INTERIOR  99 

ship.  Besides  the  Interior  Department  and  the  other 
five  enumerated  departments,  Switzerland  has  one 
more,  the  Department  of  Commercial  Industry  and 
Agriculture.  It  will  be  seen  that  the  executive  depart- 
ments of  the  three  Republics  deal  with  practically  the 
same  matters,  and  the  matters  dealt  with  by  the  Execu- 
tive and  the  names  applied  to  the  departments,  in  most 
governments,  are  practically  the  same.  In  1849,  the 
United  States  had  but  six  departments,  State  or  For- 
eign Affairs,  Treasury,  War,  Navy,  Justice,  and  Post- 
Office.  Each  of  these  departments  dealt  primarily  with 
the  matters  indicated  by  its  name,  but  each  depart- 
ment had  charge  of  other  executive  matters  of  the  Gov- 
ernment. In  1849  the  Interior  Department  was  cre- 
ated to  take  care  of  the  miscellaneous  matters  which 
did  not  properly  belong  to  Foreign  Affairs,  Finance, 
Military  Affairs,  Justice,  or  Posts.  Since  the  creation  of 
the  Department  of  the  Interior,  there  have  been  created 
the  Departments  of  Agriculture,  of  Commerce,  and  of 
Labor;  but  when  we  take  up  these  departments,  it  will 
be  seen  that  these  three,  together  with  the  Department 
of  the  Interior,  all  deal  with  home  affairs  other  than 
those  dealt  with  specifically  by  the  departments  in  exist- 
ence in  1849,  and  that  the  last  four  departments  cre- 
ated in  the  Federal  Executive  deal  with  home  affairs 
which  are  parceled  out  among  these  departments  in  no 
very  scientific  or  orderly  manner.  The  Departments  of 
Agriculture,  of  Commerce,  and  of  Labor,  in  the  main 
exercise  functions  which  were  given  to  the  Depart- 
ment of  the  Interior  when  it  was  created,  and  it  will 


100  THE   FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

be  interesting  to  consider,  a  little  more  fully  than  we 
have  previously  done,  the  creation  of  the  Department 
of  the  Interior. 

Soon  after  the  close  of  the  Mexican  War,  and  as  an 
outcome  of  the  accession  of  territory  resulting  from  that 
war,  as  well  as  of  the  great  increase  in  population, 
wealth,  and  business  throughout  the  country,  a  move- 
ment was  started  having  in  view  the  establishment  of  a 
new  executive  department,  to  be  known  as  the  "  Home 
Department,"  which  should  take  over  the  various  bu- 
reaus and  offices  transacting  public  business  relating 
to  domestic  affairs,  such  as  patents,  pensions,  Indian 
affairs,  and  the  Census.  At  that  time  the  work  pertain- 
ing to  these  offices  was  distributed  among  various  de- 
partments: The  Patent  Office  was  under  the  supervi- 
sion of  the  Secretary  of  State;  the  Land  Office  and  the 
Census  were  under  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury;  In- 
dian affairs  were  controlled  by  the  Secretary  of  War; 
and  pensions  were  granted  under  the  supervision  of  the 
Secretaries  of  War  and  the  Navy. 

In  his  annual  report  for  the  fiscal  year  ended  June  30, 
1848,  R.  J.  Walker,  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury,  in- 
vited attention  to  the  enormous  amount  of  work  de- 
volved upon  the  head  of  that  department,  and  the  di- 
verse nature  of  the  duties  performed  by  him,  some  of 
which  had  no  connection  with  commerce  or  the  public 
finances.  He  also  pointed  out  that  the  State  Depart- 
ment had  no  proper  connection  with  the  work  of  the 
Patent  Office,  and  that  Indian  affairs  and  applications 
for  pensions  could  be  better  handled  elsewhere  than  in 


STATE,  TREASURY,  INTERIOR        101 

the  War  and  Navy  Departments.  He  accordingly  re- 
commended that  a  new  department  be  established,  and 
that  all  the  offices  above  named  be  placed  under  such 
new  department. 

The  matter  was  subsequently  taken  up  by  Congress; 
and  on  February  12,  1849,  the  Committee  on  Agricul- 
ture of  the  House  submitted  a  report  endorsing  the  views 
of  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury,  together  with  a  bill 
for  the  creation  of  a  new  department,  to  be  known  as 
the  "Home  Department,"  or  "Department  of  the  In- 
terior." 

The  committee  stated  that  the  immediate  considera- 
tions which  urged  the  establishment  of  the  new  depart- 
ment were  the  mischiefs,  losses,  and  dangers  resulting 
from  the  existing  irrational  and  ruinous  distribution  of 
executive  powers  and  duties.  They  added,  however, 
that  there  were  broader  considerations  of  public  policy 
dictating  the  creation  of  such  a  department.  Since  the 
establishment  of  the  Federal  Government  sixty  years 
before,  they  said,  some  $700,000,000  had  been  expended 
for  purposes  of  military  aggression  or  defense;  and  the 
average  expenditure  for  the  War  and  Navy  Depart- 
ments was  then  twelve  or  fourteen  millions  of  dollars. 
The  whole  amount  of  expenditure  during  the  same 
period  for  the  promotion  of  the  arts  of  peace,  the 
development  of  agriculture  and  of  the  mechanical  sci- 
ences, and  for  the  facilitation  of  internal  intercourse 
and  trade,  the  support  of  education  and  the  diffusion 
of  knowledge,  did  not  exceed  one  million  dollars.  The 
report  continued:  "The  general  fact  remains  unaf- 


102  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

fected,  that  war  and  preparations  for  war  have  been 
practically  regarded  as  the  chief  duty  and  end  of  this 
Government,  while  the  arts  of  peace  and  production, 
whereby  nations  are  subsisted,  civilization  advanced, 
and  happiness  secured,  have  been  esteemed  unworthy 
the  attention,  or  foreign  to  the  objects,  of  this  Gov- 
ernment. It  seems  to  us  that  this  should  not  always 
continue,  but  that  we  should,  as  a  wise  people,  reor- 
ganize the  Government,  so  far  as  to  fulfill  these  duties 
also,  which  are  suggested  by  the  nature,  aspiration, 
and  wants  of  our  race,  as  psychic,  moral,  and  intel- 
lectual beings;  that  it  should  do  something  towards 
protecting  the  people  against  those  internal  enemies, 
ignorance,  destitution,  and  vice,  as  well  as  against  those 
foreign  foes  who  may  invade,  or  who  it  is  apprehended 
may  assail  us."  In  pursuance  of  the  foregoing  recom- 
mendation, Congress  passed  the  act  approved  March 
3,  1849, l  entitled  "An  Act  to  establish  the  Home  De- 
partment," which  I  have  discussed  in  Chapter  III. 

To-day  the  Department  of  the  Interior  deals  with 
five  totally  different  classes  of  matters.  The  General 
Land  Office,  Reclamation  Service,  Geological  Survey, 
and  Bureau  of  Mines  all  relate  to  the  public  lands  of 
the  United  States  and  would  seem  to  be  very  properly 
in  a  department  called  the  "Interior."  The  other 
things  dealt  with  by  the  department  are  education, 
Indian  affairs,  patents,  and  pensions.  When  we  examine 
the  Department  of  Agriculture,  we  shall  find  that,  in 
addition  to  the  bureaus  that  deal  with  purely  agricul- 
1  9  U.S.  Stat.  L.  395. 


STATE,  TREASURY,  INTERIOR         103 

tural  matters,  there  is  an  office  of  Public  Roads,  whose 
duty  it  is  to  study  road-building  in  connection  with 
state  highway  officials  and  to  conduct  a  one-year  post- 
graduate course  in  highway  engineering.  This  office 
has  no  more  to  do  with  agriculture  than  it  has  with 
labor,  and  it  would  seem  properly  to  belong  in  the  Bu- 
reau of  Education,  which,  until  a  Department  of  Edu- 
cation is  created,  is  in  the  Interior  Department.  There 
is  also  in  the  Department  of  Agriculture  the  Forest 
Service,  and  it  would  seem  that  this  service  has  more  to 
do  with  the  lands  held  by  the  United  States  than  it  has 
to  do  with  agriculture  and  so  should  belong  in  the 
Interior  Department.  The  Forest  Service  has  also  an 
educational  side  which  would  seem  to  furnish  an  addi- 
tional reason  for  its  being  placed  in  the  Interior  Depart- 
ment, which  conducts  the  Bureau  of  Education.  When 
we  examine  the  Department  of  Commerce  we  shall  see 
that,  in  addition  to  its  functions  as  to  matters  relating 
primarily  to  commerce,  under  it  the  Bureau  of  the  Cen- 
sus is  a  subdivision.  Theoretically  it  would  seem  that 
the  Bureau  of  the  Census  deals  primarily  with  the 
personnel  of  American  citizens  and  that  the  Census 
might  just  as  well  be  in  the  Department  of  the  Interior 
or  in  the  Department  of  Labor.  The  Department  of 
the  Interior  was  created  to  attend  to  the  miscellaneous 
home  affairs  of  the  United  States.  There  was  no  partic- 
ular theory  of  the  separation  of  executive  functions  con- 
sidered when  it  was  created,  nor  have  such  principles 
been  considered  in  the  creation  of  the  subsequent  De- 
partments of  Agriculture,  of  Commerce,  and  of  Labor. 


104  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

The  Department  of  the  Interior  grew  too  large  and  part 
of  it  was  broken  off  to  form  the  Department  of  Agri- 
culture. It  continued  to  grow  and  the  Department  of 
Commerce  and  Labor  was  created.  Labor  insisted  on 
recognition  in  a  department  of  its  own  and  the  Depart- 
ment of  Labor  was  created.  When  the  next  executive 
department  of  the  Government  is  created,  the  Depart- 
ments of  the  Interior,  of  Agriculture,  of  Commerce,  and 
of  Labor  should  all  be  reorganized  and  the  former 
Departments  of  State,  Treasury,  and  War  should  be 
stripped  of  the  matters  which  do  not  properly  belong  to 
them.  The  Department  of  Justice  as  at  present  organ- 
ized deals  solely  with  matters  properly  in  the  law  de- 
partment of  the  Government. 

A  statement  of  the  functions  of  the  Department  of 
the  Interior  must  be  either  a  brief  description  of  its 
duties  as  to  public  lands,  education,  Indian  affairs, 
patents,  and  pensions,  or  it  must  be  a  very  detailed 
description  of  these  entirely  diverse  matters.  Any  full 
consideration  of  the  history  of  the  dealings  of  the  na- 
tion with  the  Indians,  or  any  full  description  of  the  pub- 
lic lands  held  at  present  by  the  United  States,  or  any 
technical  discussion  of  patents  is  entirely  without  the 
scope  of  this  book.  The  Department  of  the  Interior  to- 
day conducts  its  work  through  the  General  Land  Office, 
the  Indian  Office,  the  Bureau  of  Pensions,  the  Patent 
Office,  the  Bureau  of  Education,  the  Geological  Sur- 
vey, the  Reclamation  Service,  and  the  Bureau  of  Mines. 
Before  briefly  considering  the  matters  performed  by 
these  subdivisions  of  the  department,  it  will  be  of  inter- 


STATE,  TREASURY,  INTERIOR         105 

est  to  note  that  the  Department  of  Labor  had  its  origin 
in  the  Bureau  of  Labor  created  in  the  Department  of 
the  Interior  in  1884,  and  that  there  was  once  under  the 
direction  of  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior  a  Commis- 
sioner of  Railroads.  The  Interstate  Commerce  Com- 
mission was  formerly  also  under  his  supervision,  and 
the  Secretary  of  the  Interior  once  also  had  charge  of 
the  suppression  of  the  slave  trade.  The  department 
was  created  to  handle  all  existing  miscellaneous  home 
affairs. 

The  policy  of  the  new  department  was  in  harmony 
with  the  purpose  of  Congress  in  creating  it,  and  in  the 
very  first  annual  report  of  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior, 
Thomas  Ewing,  of  Ohio,  submitted  to  the  President, 
December  3,  1849,  a  recommendation  for  the  organiza- 
tion of  a  separate  Bureau  of  Agriculture,  which  should 
carry  out,  on  an  enlarged  and  systematic  scale,  the 
work  hitherto  performed  by  an  agricultural  division 
in  the  Patent  Office.  The  Secretary  also  urged  in  this 
report  the  construction  of  a  highway  or  a  railroad  to 
the  Pacific  Ocean.  A  Bureau  of  Agriculture  was  estab- 
lished, but  it  grew  later  into  the  Department  of  Agri- 
culture. The  work  of  the  Department  of  the  Interior 
in  regard  to  railroads,  however,  deserves  more  than 
passing  mention. 

By  the  original  act  incorporating  the  Union  Pacific 
Railroad  Company,  approved  July  1,  1862, *  the  Sec- 
retary of  the  Interior  was  authorized  to  nominate  five 
of  the  incorporators;  and  the  company  was  required  to 
i  12  U.S.  Stat.  L.  489. 


106  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

file  its  acceptance  of  the  conditions  of  the  act  in  the 
Interior  Department.  Various  other  duties  with  respect 
to  the  Pacific  Railroads  were  imposed  upon  the  Sec- 
retary from  time  to  time;  and  he  was,  generally  speak- 
ing, made  the  medium  of  carrying  out  the  policy  of  the 
President  with  regard  to  such  roads,  with  the  excep- 
tion, of  course,  of  duties  pertaining  to  the  indebtedness 
of  the  roads  to  the  United  States,  which  were  per- 
formed by  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury. 

The  Federal  Executive,  through  the  Interior  Depart- 
ment, exercised  very  important  functions  in  reference 
to  the  building  of  the  great  transcontinental  railroads. 
At  the  present  time,  however,  the  Department  of  the 
Interior  has  nothing  to  do  with  these  roads.  I  shall 
later  consider  the  possibility  of  future  executive  super- 
vision of  the  railways  of  the  nation.  To  encourage  the 
building  of  these  roads,  the  United  States  granted  to 
the  railroads  enormous  tracts  of  its  public  lands,  and 
to-day  the  Department  of  the  Interior,  through  the 
General  Land  Office,  has  charge  of  all  that  remains  of 
the  enormous  territory  that  originally  belonged  to  the 
Federal  Government. 

As  I  have  already  stated,  the  present  functions  of  the 
Department  of  the  Interior  have  to  do  with  lands, 
education,  Indians,  pensions,  and  patents.  Let  us  first 
consider  the  functions  of  the  department  in  reference 
to  the  government  lands.  The  four  subdivisions  of  the 
department,  the  General  Land  Office,  the  Reclamation 
Service,  the  Geological  Survey,  and  the  Bureau  of 
Mines,  all  deal  with  these  functions,  and  we  shall  con- 


STATE,  TREASURY,  INTERIOR         107 

sider  them  together,  although  they  are  not  grouped 
together  in  the  official  list  of  the  subdivisions  of  the 
department.  The  General  Land  Office  was  organized  as 
a  Bureau  of  the  Treasury  Department  under  Act  of 
May  25,  1812, x  and  became  a  Bureau  of  the  Interior 
Department  when  the  latter  was  created.  The  Geolog- 
ical Survey  was  organized  as  a  Bureau  of  the  Interior 
Department  under  Act  of  March  3,  1879, 2  while  the 
Reclamation  Service  was  not  provided  for  until  June 
17,  1902.3  The  Bureau  of  Mines  was  provided  for  May 
16,  1910. 4  The  General  Land  Office  is  in  charge  of 
a  commissioner,  while  the  Geological  Survey  and  the 
Reclamation  Commission  and  the  Bureau  of  Mines 
are  in  charge  of  directors.  Each  of  these  four  divisions 
of  the  Interior  Department  has  its  separate  organiza- 
tion and  is  only  under  the  general  direction  of  the  Sec- 
retary of  the  Interior.  The  General  Land  Office  not 
only  has  its  own  chief  clerk,  but  has  its  own  corps  of 
law  clerks  and  examiners,  and  is  itself  divided  into 
twelve  divisions,  each  of  which  is  in  charge  of  a  chief  of 
division.  So,  too,  the  Geological  Survey  has  its  own 
chief  clerk  and  its  various  administrative  branches. 
The  Reclamation  Service  has  its  own  chief  clerk,  chief 
engineer,  and  chief  counsel  as  well  as  a  corps  of  assist- 
ants, while  the  Bureau  of  Mines  is  divided  into  eleven 
sections,  each  in  charge  of  a  chief  of  section.  One  of  these 
sections  is  the  legal  department.  The  General  Land 
Office  has  entire  charge  of  the  survey,  management, 

1  2  U.S.  Stat.  L.  716.  2  20  U.S.  Stat.  L.  394. 

»  32  U.S.  Stat.  L.  388.  4  36  U.S.  Stat.  L.  369. 


108  THE   FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

and  disposition  of  public  lands,  with  all  the  various 
matters  relating  to  them,  such  as  the  adjudication  of 
conflicting  claims,  the  issuance  of  patents  for  lands, 
granting  of  railroad  rights  of  way,  and  other  easements; 
the  Geological  Survey  is  charged  with  classification  of 
the  public  lands  and  the  examination  of  the  geological 
structures,  mineral  resources,  and  mineral  products  of 
the  national  domain.  It  has  been  and  still  is  engaged 
in  making  a  geological  map  of  the  United  States  involv- 
ing both  topographic  and  geologic  surveys,  and  every 
year  it  collects  its  statistics  of  mineral  productions  and 
makes  investigations  as  to  surface  and  underground 
waters.  The  Reclamation  Service  is  charged  with  the 
survey,  construction,  and  operation  of  the  irrigation 
works  in  arid  States,  while  the  Bureau  of  Mines  inves- 
tigates methods  of  mining,  the  treatment  of  ores,  the 
use  of  explosives,  and  other  matters  relating  to  mining. 
The  bureau  also  tests  and  analyzes  coals,  ores,  and  other 
mineral  fuel  substances  for  the  use  of  the  United  States. 
One  of  the  most  important  duties  of  the  bureau  is  in 
relation  to  the  safety  of  miners,  appliances  for  the  pre- 
vention of  accidents,  and  improvements  of  conditions 
under  which  mining  operations  are  carried  on.  In  this 
last  function,  the  Department  of  the  Interior  through 
the  Bureau  of  Mines  touches  very  closely  the  sort  of 
work  one  would  expect  to  be  done  by  the  Department 
of  Labor. 

Since  the  Government  was  founded,  about  1,835,- 
000,000  acres  of  land  have  come  into  the  control  of  the 
United  States,  and  all  of  this  has  been  disposed  of  in 


STATE,  TREASURY,  INTERIOR         109 

various  ways  except  about  700,000,000  acres.1  By  the 
Louisiana  Purchase  in  1803,  the  territory  from  the 
Mississippi  River  to  the  Rocky  Mountains  became  part 
of  the  United  States,  and  all  but  a  very  small  portion 
of  this  territory  became  the  absolute  property  of  the 
Government.  The  Oregon  Territory  and  the  purchase 
of  Florida  also  brought  to  the  United  States  added  land 
assets.  The  public  domain  was  further  augmented  as  a 
result  of  the  Mexican  War,  and  the  purchase  of  Alaska 
in  1867  brought  another  enormous  and  valuable  terri- 
tory into  the  possession  of  the  Government.  The  greater 
part  of  the  public  domain  of  which  the  Government  has 
disposed  has  been  sold  to  individual  settlers  at  low  rates 
for  the  purpose  of  developing  the  country.  Large  grants 
have  been  made  to  various  of  the  States  for  educational 
purposes  and  for  internal  improvements.  Ten  million 
acres  were  given  to  the  States  for  agricultural  college 
properties  in  1862,  and  since  1860  such  great  trans- 
continental railroads  as  the  Northern  Pacific,  Union 
Pacific,  and  Central  Pacific  were  granted  large  tracts  of 
land  as  an  aid  to  the  building  of  these  railroads.  The 
Government  is  still  disposing  of  land  under  the  law 
which  provides  for  homestead  entries  by  actual  settlers. 
The  report  of  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior  shows  that 
the  total  cash  receipts  from  sales  of  public  land  for 
the  fiscal  year  1914  were  $4,256,102.96.  Oil  lands,  coal 
lands,  forest  lands,  water  rights,  timber  lands,  all  give 
rise  to  most  important  questions  concerning  the  proper 
administration  of  the  public  domain,  and  the  Secretary 
1  Frederic  J.  Haskin,  The  American  Government,  p.  79. 


110  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

of  the  Interior  in  his  report  for  the  fiscal  year  ending 
June  30,  1914,  says,  "Contrary  to  the  general  belief,  the 
business  of  the  Land  Department  is  increasing,  al- 
though the  monies  received  from  public  land  sources 
are  decreasing."  By  the  Act  of  March  1, 1872,  Congress 
inaugurated  the  policy  of  setting  aside  tracts  of  land  as 
national  parks.  The  Yellowstone  National  Park  was 
the  first  of  these  national  reserves.  Since  the  creation  of 
the  Yellowstone  Park,  eleven  different  parks  in  various 
parts  of  the  country  have  been  created.  Alaska,  rich 
in  mineral  and  other  resources,  presents  at  the  present 
time  most  important  questions  for  solution  by  the  De- 
partment of  the  Interior.  There  has  been  no  railroad 
construction  in  Alaska  for  a  number  of  years,  and  on 
March  12, 1914,  Congress  passed  a  law  providing  for  the 
construction  of  a  system  of  railroads  into  the  interior  of 
Alaska.  The  handling  of  the  public  lands  of  the  Gov- 
ernment is  a  matter  to  which  the  general  public  has 
given  but  little  consideration,  and  it  is  only  in  recent 
years  that  a  realization  of  the  enormous  assets  still  pos- 
sessed by  the  Government  has  been  brought  home  to 
the  American  people. 

The  Patent  Office,  Bureau  of  Education,  Office  of 
Indian  Affairs,  and  Bureau  of  Pensions  remain  to  be 
considered.  Article  I,  section  8,  of  the  Constitution 
gave  to  Congress  the  power  to  promote  the  progress  of 
science  and  useful  arts,  by  securing  for  limited  times  to 
authors  and  inventors  the  exclusive  right  to  their  re- 
spective writings  and  discoveries.  In  the  beginning  of 
the  Government,  patents  were  granted  by  a  board,  of 


STATE,  TREASURY,  INTERIOR         111 

which  the  Secretary  of  War  and  the  Attorney-General 
were  members,  and  later  the  granting  of  patents  de- 
volved upon  the  Secretary  of  State  and  the  Attorney- 
General.  In  1836  a  Bureau  of  the  State  Department 
was  established  having  entire  charge  of  patents,  and  on 
the  creation  of  the  Department  of  the  Interior,  in  1849, 
the  Patent  Office  was  transferred  to  it.  Patents  are 
granted  to  the  original  inventor  and  secure  to  him  the 
exclusive  right  to  his  invention  for  a  term  of  years.  The 
Patent  Office  is  in  charge  of  the  Commissioner  of  Pat- 
ents and  two  assistant  commissioners.  It  employs  an 
enormous  force  of  examiners  and  clerks  and  occupies 
the  whole  of  a  huge  building  for  its  purposes.  The  work 
of  the  office  is  highly  technical,  and  the  "Congressional 
Directory"  for  December,  1914,  gives  a  list  of  forty- 
four  principal  examiners  having  charge  of  applications 
for  patents  relating  to  acoustics,  artesian  wells,  buckles, 
buttons,  buildings,  hardware,  carriages,  chemistry,  elec- 
tricity, and  a  long  list  including  all  matters  in  which 
any  one  could  possibly  claim  an  invention.  It  is  stated 
that  the  civilized  nations  of  the  earth  have  issued  three 
million  patents,  and  that  more  than  one  million  of  these 
have  been  issued  by  the  American  Patent  Office.  The 
present  Patent  Office  Building,  although  it  occupies 
several  square  city  blocks  in  Washington,  is  totally  in- 
adequate for  its  purposes,  and  the  work  of  this  office 
is  in  a  marked  degree  indicative  of  the  mechanical  and 
industrial  achievements  of  the  American  people.  Dur- 
ing the  fiscal  year  ending  June  30,  1914,  the  total  num- 
ber of  applications  for  patents  was  81,539,  the  greatest 


112  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

number  received  during  any  year  in  the  history  of  the 
Patent  Office.  The  total  receipts  of  the  office  for  that 
year  were  $2,069,988.95. ' 

One  sometimes  finds  a  great  deal  of  unintentional 
humor  in  the  official  reports  and  directories  of  the  Gov- 
ernment. The  official  duties  of  the  Commissioner  of 
Education,  as  set  forth  in  the  "Congressional  Direc- 
tory" of  December,  1914,  are  as  follows:  "The  Com- 
missioner of  Education  collects  statistics  and  general 
information  showing  the  condition  and  progress  of  edu- 
cation, issues  an  annual  report  in  two  volumes,  a  bulle- 
tin in  several  numbers  annually,  and  miscellaneous 
publications;  has  charge  of  the  schools  for  the  educa- 
tion of  native  children  in  Alaska,  supervises  the  rein- 
deer industry  in  Alaska,  and  administers  the  endow- 
ment fund  for  the  support  of  colleges  for  the  benefit  of 
agriculture  and  mechanic  arts."  2  Professor  Fairlie 
says,  "The  bureau  has  collected  one  of  the  most  valu- 
able pedagogical  libraries  in  the  world  and  has  been 
called  a  sort  of  educational  clearing-house."  3  The  issu- 
ing of  an  annual  report  in  two  volumes,  a  bulletin  in 
several  numbers,  and  the  supervision  of  the  reindeer 
industry  in  Alaska  by  no  means  give  an  adequate  under- 
standing of  the  important  work  rendered  by  the  Com- 
missioner of  Education.  Although  the  National  Gov- 
ernment under  the  Constitution  is  not  authorized  to 

1  Report  of  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior  for  191 U,  p.  52. 

2  Congressional  Directory,  December  14,  1914. 

3  John  A.  Fairlie,  The  National  Administration  of  the  United 
States,  p.  214. 


STATE,  TREASURY,   INTERIOR         113 

establish  a  general  system  of  education,  it  takes  a  most 
important  part  in  educational  matters  throughout  the 
country,  and  there  are  numerous  educational  activities 
of  the  Government  which  should  be  brought  under  the 
direction  of  the  Commissioner.  During  the  year  1914 
the  bureau  through  its  specialists  studied  such  impor- 
tant matters  as  recent  developments  in  English  uni- 
versities, preparation  of  teachers  in  secondary  schools 
in  Germany,  France,  and  Great  Britain,  and  exercised 
a  most  salutary  influence  throughout  the  country. 
Representatives  of  the  bureau  inspected  thirty-five 
American  colleges  and  universities,  attended  fifteen  con- 
ferences on  higher  education  in  different  parts  of  the 
country,  worked  out  plans  for  the  tabulation  of  college 
curricula,  and  otherwise  promoted  education.  All  of 
this  in  addition  to  conducting  the  Alaska  reindeer  serv- 
ice! 

As  a  part  of  his  report  on  the  Bureau  of  Education, 
the  Secretary  of  the  Interior  states:  "  On  June  30,  1913, 
there  were  in  Alaska  47,266  reindeer  distributed  among 
sixty-two  herds.  The  increase  for  the  year  was  twenty- 
three  per  cent,  notwithstanding  the  fact  that  nearly 
five  thousand  reindeer  were  killed  for  their  meat  and 
skin.  The  total  income  of  the  natives  from  the  reindeer 
industry  during  the  year,  exclusive  of  meat  and  hides 
used  for  the  natives  themselves,  was  $66,966.00."  x 

Upon  reading  this,  I  wrote  to  the  Secretary  of  the 
Interior  as  follows:  "I  am  working  on  a  little  book  on 
the  executive  departments,  and  I  am  venturing  to  ask 

1  Report  of  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior  for  191k,  P.  56. 


114  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

you  if  you  could  advise  me  how  it  happens  that  the 
Bureau  of  Education  has  charge  of  the  Alaska  reindeer 
service.  Such  duties  seem  to  me  quite  foreign  to  the 
bureau,  and  as  illustrative  of  the  heterogeneous  func- 
tions of  the  Department  of  the  Interior.  There  may, 
however,  be  some  reason  for  the  association  of  the  rein- 
deer service  with  the  Department  of  Education.  If 
there  is,  I  should  be  greatly  obliged  for  information  on 
this  subject." 

I  very  promptly  received  the  following  explanation 
from  the  Chief  of  the  Alaska  Division:  — 

"The  Alaska  reindeer  service  is  an  integral  part  of 
the  educational  system  of  the  Bureau  of  Education  for 
northern  and  western  Alaska.  The  district  superin- 
tendents of  schools  are  also  the  superintendents  of  the 
reindeer  service;  the  teachers  in  charge  of  the  United 
States  public  schools  in  the  regions  affected  by  the  rein- 
deer industry  are  ex-officio  local  superintendents  of  the 
reindeer  herds  in  the  vicinity  of  their  schools.  The 
reindeer  service  is  a  system  of  industrial  education  of 
the  most  practical  kind,  which,  in  the  course  of  a  sin- 
gle generation,  has  elevated  the  Eskimos  in  the  coastal 
regions  of  western  Alaska,  from  Point  Barrow  to  the 
Pacific  Ocean,  from  nomadic  hunters  and  fishermen, 
eking  out  a  precarious  existence  upon  fish  and  game, 
to  civilized,  thrifty  people  having  in  their  herds  assured 
support  for  themselves  and  opportunity  to  acquire 
wealth  by  the  sale  of  meat  and  skins  to  the  white  men 
in  those  regions." 

The  Constitution  (article  I,  section  8)  provides  that 


STATE,  TREASURY,  INTERIOR         115 

Congress  shall  have  power  to  regulate  commerce  with 
foreign  nations  and  among  the  several  States,  and  with 
the  Indian  tribes.  The  Constitution  makes  no  further 
reference  to  the  Indians.  Washington  delivered  his 
first  inaugural  address  in  the  City  of  New  York  on 
April  30,  1789.  Among  the  first,  if  not  actually  the  first 
of  the  special  messages  he  sent  to  the  Senate  referred 
to  Indian  treaties.  On  May  25,  1789,  he  communicated 
with  the  Senate  as  follows:  "Gentlemen  of  the  Senate, 
In  pursuance  of  the  order  of  the  late  Congress,  treaties 
between  the  United  States  and  civilized  nations  of  In- 
dians having  been  negotiated  and  signed,  these  treaties, 
with  sundry  papers  respecting  them,  I  now  lay  before 
you  for  your  consideration  and  advice,  by  the  hands 
of  General  Knox,  under  whose  official  superintendence 
the  business  was  transacted  and  who  will  be  ready  to 
communicate  to  you  any  information  on  such  points 
as  may  appear  to  require  it."  x  General  Knox  had 
served  throughout  the  Revolutionary  War,  was  an  offi- 
cer of  the  Society  of  the  Cincinnati,  and  at  that  time 
was  the  Secretary  of  War,  and,  although  the  only  refer- 
ence in  the  Constitution  to  Indians  referred  to  the  regu- 
lation of  commerce  with  the  Indian  tribes,  for  nearly 
fifty  years  after  Washington's  inauguration,  Indian 
affairs  were  of  necessity  administered  by  the  military 
authorities.  In  1832  the  office  of  Commissioner  of  In- 
dian affairs  was  created  in  the  War  Department  to  deal 
with  the  Government's  peaceful  relations  with  the  In- 
dians; but  until  the  creation  of  the  Department  of  the 
1  Messages  and  Papers  of  the  Presidents,  vol.  I,  p.  57. 


116  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

Interior  and  the  transfer  to  it  of  the  Bureau  of  Indian 
Affairs,  the  relations  of  the  Government  to  the  Indians 
were  far  from  peaceful.  There  have  been  a  number  of 
interesting  books  written  on  the  subject  of  the  Ameri- 
can Indian  and  something  has  been  written  concerning 
the  relation  of  the  Government  to  the  Indian;  but  at 
the  present  time  the  Indian  problem,  although  differ- 
ing entirely  from  what  it  was  at  the  institution  of  the 
Government,  is  one  of  the  most  interesting  and  impor- 
tant questions  before  the  Federal  Government,  and  the 
subject  of  the  relation  of  the  Government  to  the  Indians, 
together  with  the  history  of  the  Indians  in  this  coun- 
try, furnishes  a  most  inviting  field  for  research  and  a 
most  profitable  region  of  investigation  for  the  student 
of  history  and  government.  There  is  an  opportunity  for 
a  most  valuable  work  on  this  subject.  On  the  1st  of 
July,  1914,  the  Cherokee  Nation  ceased  to  exist.  Its 
Senate  and  House,  governor  and  officers,  laws  and 
property  have  disappeared.  The  members  of  the  Na- 
tion became  American  citizens,  and  if  the  Government 
at  the  present  time  has  any  well-defined  policy  as  to 
the  Indians,  it  is  to  break  up  the  tribal  government  and 
fit  them  for  individual  citizenship  as  soon  as  possible. 
I  cannot  here  go  into  the  history  of  the  Indian  or  his 
relation  to  the  Government.  The  relations  of  the  Gov- 
ernment with  the  Indians  are  among  the  most  important 
matters  with  which  the  Interior  Department  has  to  deal, 
and  the  Interior  Department  at  the  present  time  is  the 
most  interesting  department  of  the  Executive  by  reason 
of  the  importance  and  novelty  of  the  problems  which 


STATE,  TREASURY,   INTERIOR         117 

confront  it.  The  Census  of  1860  showed  254,300  In- 
dians in  the  United  States.  The  Census  of  1910  shows 
an  Indian  population  of  304,950.  These  Indians  mostly- 
live  on  government  reservations  which  Secretary  of  the 
Interior  Lane  aptly  designates  as  "little  more  than  ex- 
panded and  perhaps  somewhat  idealized  orphan  asy- 
lums." The  importance  of  the  present  Indian  problem 
may  be  seen  from  the  fact  that  at  present  they  have 
lands  aggregating  109,150  square  miles,  or  territory 
equal  to  that  of  Maine,  New  Hampshire,  Vermont, 
Massachusetts,  Rhode  Island,  Kentucky,  and  Virginia. 
The  Department  of  the  Interior  estimates  these  hold- 
ings to  be  worth  $600,000,000.  Over  two  thirds  of  this 
land  is  now  held  as  individual  farms,  the  unallotted  or 
tribal  lands  being  estimated  as  worth  less  than  $200,- 
000,000.  The  "Report  of  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior 
for  1914"  says:  "If  the  oil  and  coal  and  timber  lands 
belonging  to  the  Indians  were  appraised  at  their  full 
value,  and  if  to  this  the  value  of  their  yieldings  and 
personal  property  were  added,  it  is  estimated  that  the 
Indians  would  be  found  to  have  a  wealth  approximat- 
ing $900,000,000."  In  other  words,  each  Indian  in  the 
United  States  is  at  the  present  time  worth  on  an  aver- 
age $3000.  In  addition  to  these  possessions,  the  Treas- 
ury of  the  United  States  has  tribal  funds  approximat- 
ing $50,000,000,  while  in  the  banks  throughout  the 
nation,  the  Government  has  deposited  to  the  credit  of 
individual  Indians  under  its  control  something  over 
$18,000,000.  The  Secretary  of  the  Interior  considers 
the  Osage  Indians  as  the  wealthiest  people  in  the  world, 


118  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

and  the  department  estimates  the  average  wealth  of 
the  Osage  Indians  at  $9579.85.  With  their  land-hold- 
ings and  oil  and  gas  royalties,  for  an  average  family  of 
four  the  Osages  have  an  annual  income  of  approxi- 
mately $2700,  in  addition  to  their  income  from  lands, 
and  some  families  have  an  income  of  $12,000  a  year.1 

A  Bureau  of  Pensions  was  originally  under  the  direc- 
tion of  the  War  Department,2  and  logically  it  might 
just  as  well  still  be  under  the  direction  of  the  War  De- 
partment as  a  part  of  the  Department  of  the  Interior. 
In  his  first  annual  address  to  Congress,  on  January  8, 
1790,  Washington  said:  "A  free  people  ought  not  only 
to  be  armed  but  disciplined;  to  which  end  a  uniform  and 
well-digested  plan  is  requisite;  and  their  safety  and 
interest  require  that  they  should  promote  such  manu- 
factories as  tend  to  render  them  independent  of  others 
for  essential,  particularly  military  supplies."  3  I  have 
already  quoted  President  Taft  as  stating,  as  his  opin- 
ion, that  the  present  pensions  are  largely  due  to  our 
not  having  an  adequate  army  ready  in  the  past.  The 
Secretary  of  the  Interior  reported  to  the  President  that 
during  the  fiscal  year  ending  June  30,  1914,  the  total 
expenditures  for  pensions  had  been  reduced  from  $174,- 
171,660.80  in  the  preceding  year  to  $172,417,546.26. 4 
At  the  end  of  this  fiscal  year  there  were  on  the  pension 
roll  785,239  names,  a  net  loss  of  35,033  from  the  total 
of  820,272  on  the  roll  at  the  beginning  of  the  year;  the 

1  Report  of  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior  for  1911+,  p.  3. 

2  Act  of  March  2,  1833,  4  U.S.  Stat.  L.  622. 

3  Messages  and  Papers  of  the  Presidents,  vol.  I,  p.  65. 

4  Report  of  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior  for  191k,  p.  19. 


STATE,  TREASURY,  INTERIOR         119 

decrease  of  pensioners  for  the  preceding  year  was  40,094. 
The  actual  number  of  soldiers  pensioned  for  the  Revo- 
lutionary War  was  52,504.  The  last  pensioned  soldier 
of  this  war  died  in  1869  and  the  last  pensioned  widow 
died  in  1906.  For  the  War  of  1812,  the  total  number  of 
pension  certificates  issued  was  about  67,000  and  the 
last  surviving  pensioned  soldier  of  this  war  died  in 
1905. l  Since  the  institution  of  the  Government,  it  is 
estimated  that  about  $4,680,000,000  has  been  paid  for 
pensions,  and  that  of  this  amount  all  except  about  $163,- 
000,000  has  been  paid  on  account  of  Civil  War  pensions. 
The  Bureau  of  Pensions  occupies  a  huge  building  de- 
voted exclusively  to  its  purposes  in  Judiciary  Square  in 
Washington.  On  the  outside  of  this  building  is  a  deco- 
rative frieze  under  the  eaves  running  all  about  the 
building,  and  upon  this  frieze,  in  plaster,  a  long  line  of 
troops  is  ever  silently  tramping.  The  Civil  War  was 
fought  for  the  preservation  of  the  Union.  Whatever 
may  be  one's  views  as  to  the  amount  and  kind  of  pen- 
sions paid,  whether  one  regards  this  fabulous  annual 
expenditure  as  partly  a  reward  for  service  and  partly 
as  a  penalty  for  unpreparedness,  or  whatever  view  the 
American  citizen  may  take  of  these  pensions,  this 
greatest  item  of  annual  expense  to  the  Government 
should  cause  every  citizen  of  this  great  nation  to  ask 
himself  the  question,  whether  in  the  words  of  Wash- 
ington a  free  people  ought  not  to  be  "armed  and  dis- 
ciplined." The  history  of  the  Department  of  the  In- 
terior and  of  the  matters  now  under  its  supervision 
1  Report  of  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior  for  191b,  PP-  48-51. 


120  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

gives  one  the  best  idea  of  the  miraculous  development 
of  this  nation,  of  its  enormous  present  resources,  and 
even  in  the  mind  of  the  most  unimaginative  should 
awake  visions  as  to  the  future  of  this  Union.  The  Civil 
War  was  fought  for  the  preservation  of  the  Union.  The 
constitutional  questions  arising  from  that  war  are  set- 
tled once  and  for  all.  The  Department  of  the  Interior 
deals  with  the  greatest  material  resources  of  the  nation. 
Through  the  Bureau  of  Pensions  it  makes  the  greatest 
single  item  of  national  expenditure,  and  it  performs 
some  of  the  most  important  functions  of  the  Federal 
Executive  in  securing  to  the  people  of  these  United 
States  the  "more  perfect  Union"  sought  by  the  Consti- 
tution. 


Note.  —  Because  of  the  European  War,  certain  temporary 
changes  have  been  made.  Third  Assistant  Secretary  of  State 
Phillips  advises  me  that  a  separate  Mexican  Division  was  created 
July  28,  1915,  not  in  the  nature  of  a  permanent  division,  but  to 
meet  the  exigencies  of  the  present  situation.  A  Bureau  of  War 
Risk  Insurance  in  the  Treasury  Department  has  also  been  created. 
Its  purpose,  states  Assistant  Secretary  Peters,  is  to  offer  to 
American  vessels  and  cargoes  the  facilities  for  war  risk  insurance 
provided  by  English  and  continental  governments  after  the  out- 
break of  the  war. 


CHAPTER  VIII 

FUNCTIONS  OF  THE  EXECUTIVE  DEPARTMENTS  IN 
"INSURING  DOMESTIC  TRANQUILLITY" 

THE   DEPARTMENTS   OF   WAR,    THE   NAVY,  AND   JUSTICE 

The  Constitution  of  the  United  States  (article  II, 
clause  2)  says  that  the  President  shall  be  the  Com- 
mander-in-chief of  the  army  and  navy.  The  Secretary  of 
War,  the  third  ranking  member  of  the  Cabinet,  is  the 
executive  officer  through  whom  the  President  exercises 
these  functions  on  land  in  peace  and  in  war,  but  the  War 
Department  has  important  administrative  duties  con- 
cerning the  Government  of  the  United  States  other  than 
the  national  defense.  Expenditures  of  the  department 
show  its  various  functions. 

For  the  fiscal  year  1913  the  estimated  disbursements 
for  the  War  Department  were  $158,000,000.  (This  did 
not  include  $165,000,000  for  pensions  for  the  Civil  and 
other  wars.)  For  the  year  July  1,  1911,  to  June  30, 
1912,  of  the  total  disbursement  of  $147,000,000,  the 
appropriations  amounted  to  about  $2,000,000  for  the 
maintenance  of  the  civil  establishment  of  the  War 
Department,  including  such  matters  as  the  salaries  in 
the  office  of  the  Secretary  of  War  and  other  officials  in 
Washington  and  the  current  expenses  of  the  depart- 
ment. There  was  appropriated  about  $91,500,000  for 
the  support  of  the  army  proper,  a  little  over  $1,000,000 
for  the  Military  Academy  at  West  Point,  and  nearly 


122  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

$4,000,000  for  the  support  of  the  organized  militia.  Of 
the  above  $147,000,000  for  the  War  Department  in 
1912,  $40,000,000  was  appropriated  for  various  public 
works  of  the  United  States.  Of  this  amount  over  $6,- 
000,000  was  for  fortifications,  arsenals,  and  military- 
posts,  while  the  balance  was  chiefly  appropriated  for 
work  upon  the  rivers  and  harbors  of  the  United  States 
under  the  direction  of  the  War  Department.  There 
were  also  over  $8,000,000  of  insular  appropriations, 
and  so,  out  of  the  total  $147,000,000  appropriated  for 
the  year  ending  1912,  it  will  be  seen  that  a  considerable 
part  was  expended  for  non-military  purposes.1  But 
the  purely  military  expenditures  of  the  United  States 
Government  amounted  to  a  very  large  sum,  and  mat- 
ters relating  to  the  military  forces  of  the  Government 
are  the  chief  concern  of  the  War  Department,  although 
the  duties  of  the  Secretary  of  War  include  most  impor- 
tant domestic  matters  and  the  entire  supervision  of  the 
insular  possessions  of  the  United  States.  We  will  con- 
sider the  general  functions  of  the  department  and  its 
general  organization,  before  discussing  its  purely  war 
duties. 

The  work  of  the  department  can  be  divided  into  four 
classes:  The  army,  including  the  National  Guard;  the 
Engineering  Department,  supervising  river  and  harbor 
improvements  throughout  the  United  States;  the  Pan- 
ama Canal;  the  general  supervision  of  the  Philippine 
Islands,  Porto  Rico,  and  other  insular  possessions.  The 
Secretary  of  War,  as  head  of  the  department,  is  charged 
1  Annual  Report  of  the  Secretary  of  War  for  1912. 


WAR,  NAVY,  JUSTICE  123 

with  the  supervision  of  all  things  relating  to  the  above 
matters,  and  in  his  duties  he  is  aided  by  one  Assistant 
Secretary  of  War,  who  is  authorized  to  decide  all  cases 
except  those  involving  "questions  of  policy,  the  estab- 
lishment or  reversal  of  precedents,  or  matters  of  special 
or  extraordinary  importance." 

The  Assistant  Secretary  has  particular  charge  of  all 
matters  relating  to  the  militia.  The  construction  of  the 
Panama  Canal,  under  the  direction  of  the  War  Depart- 
ment, was  successfully  carried  to  a  termination  under 
the  direction  of  officers  of  the  army.  The  importance 
of  the  Panama  Canal  is  impossible  of  estimation.  Its 
opening  will  create  a  new  epoch  in  the  history  of  the 
world,  but  its  construction  contains  for  us  nothing  of 
interest  in  connection  with  the  executive  departments 
of  the  Government,  except  that  the  efficiency  of  the 
present  Panama  Canal  Commission  is  a  most  favorable 
comment  upon  the  character  and  ability  of  American 
army  officers  and  the  work  of  the  War  Department, 
and  that  to-day  the  Chief  of  Staff  says  we  have  no  ade- 
quate army  to  defend  it.  The  Philippine  Islands  are  at 
present  governed  by  the  Commission  to  the  Philippine 
Islands,  with  a  President  and  Governor-General  and 
the  local  legislature.  The  affairs  of  the  Philippine  Is- 
lands and  of  Porto  Rico  are  under  the  general  supervi- 
sion of  the  Bureau  of  Insular  Affairs  of  the  War  Depart- 
ment. The  Board  of  Engineers  for  Rivers  and  Harbors 
in  the  War  Department  has  charge  of  numerous  internal 
improvements  in  the  United  States.  The  actual  amount 
expended  under  the  direction  of  the  Chief  of  Engineers 


124  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

in  connection  with  the  improvements  of  rivers  and 
harbors  during  the  year  ending  June  30,  1912,  was 
$35,719,403.62,  and  its  work  included  such  matters  as 
the  construction  of  the  Troy  Dam,  in  the  State  of  New 
York,  in  the  Hudson  River,  for  the  improvement  of  the 
waterways  in  connection  with  the  reconstruction  of  the 
Erie  Canal.  The  river  and  harbor  work  of  the  department 
is  of  the  very  greatest  importance  to  the  United  States 
and  constitutes  one  of  its  largest  annual  expenditures. 

The  foregoing  are  the  non-military  duties  of  the  War 
Department.  Our  military  affairs  are  directed  through 
various  bodies  in  the  department.  At  the  head  of  them 
is  the  General  Staff  Corps,  which  is  the  general  direct- 
ing power  of  the  army.  The  General  Staff  Corps  was 
organized  under  the  provisions  of  the  Act  of  Congress, 
approved  February  14,  1903.  It  is  the  directing  brains 
of  the  army.  It  is  its  duty  to  prepare  plans  for  the  na- 
tional defense  and  for  the  mobilization  of  the  military 
forces  in  time  of  war;  and  to  study  and  report  upon  all 
questions  affecting  the  efficiency  of  the  army.  At  the 
head  of  the  General  Staff  is  the  Chief  of  Staff,  who  is 
practically  the  commanding  general  of  the  army,  al- 
though in  time  of  peace  we  have  no  such  officer.  He 
has  supervision  of  all  troops  and  of  all  the  other  de- 
partments which  exist  for  the  administration  of  army 
affairs.  The  office  of  the  Chief  of  Staff  is  the  supervising 
military  bureau  of  the  War  Department.  The  other 
bureaus  and  divisions  of  the  department  relating  to 
military  affairs  are  the  Division  of  Militia  Affairs  and 
the  various  military  bureaus. 


WAR,  NAVY,  JUSTICE  125 

The  Division  of  Militia  Affairs,  which  is  especially 
under  the  direction  of  the  Assistant  Secretary  of  War, 
has  charge  of  all  matters  relating  to  the  National  Guard 
of  the  various  States,  including  such  matters  as  arma- 
ment, equipment,  discipline,  training,  education,  and 
organization.  The  United  States  has  in  recent  years 
assumed  the  direction  of  the  militia,  and  since  the  Span- 
ish War  has  brought  the  various  state  organizations  to 
a  much  higher  state  of  efficiency.  Every  summer  there 
are  conducted  camps  of  instruction  in  which  the  militia 
and  regular  army  usually  participate,  and  it  has  been 
the  policy  of  the  Government  more  and  more  to  make 
the  militia  a  first  line  of  support  for  the  army  in  time 
of  war.1 

Of  the  various  military  bureaus,  it  is  unnecessary  to 

1  Experts  agree  that  the  state  militia  is  not  the  most  effective 
support  for  the  army.  Until  something  better  is  provided  it  is  all 
we  have.  Universal,  obligatory  military  service,  somewhat  after 
the  Swiss  system,  seems  to  be  the  only  adequate  solution  of  our 
needs,  and  the  chief  argument  in  favor  of  the  "Continental  Army" 
plan  is  that  it  is  a  step  toward  universal  service  as  an  adequate 
protection  for  the  Federal  Government.  Mr.  Henry  Breckinridge, 
Assistant  Secretary  of  War,  has  furnished  me  with  the  following 
official  explanation  of  the  Continental  Army:  "The  Continental 
Army,  so-called,  is  the  supplement  or  reserve  of  the  Regular  Army. 
It  will  consist  of  400,000  men  that  are  organized,  equipped,  officered, 
and  subject  to  instant  call.  It  will  be  raised  by  annual  increments 
of  133,000  men,  —  each  man  to  serve  with  the  colors  three  years,  — 
so  that  after  the  first  three  years,  it  will  always  have  400,000  men 
in  it  with  the  colors."  In  reference  to  the  recruiting  of  the  Conti- 
nental Army,  Secretary  Garrison  says,  "Taking  the  four  hundred 
congressional  districts  of  the  country,  it  would  require  three  hun- 
dred and  thirty-three  each  year  from  each  one."  At  the  present 
time,  however,  the  Continental  Army  is  only  a  plan  and  not  a  part 
of  our  national  defenses. 


126  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

do  more  than  mention  their  names.  There  is  the  Office 
of  the  Adjutant-General,  which  has  charge  of  the  issu- 
ing of  orders,  and  the  Office  of  the  Inspector-General, 
which  has  charge  of  the  examination  of  the  condition 
of  troops  and  military  posts.  The  Office  of  the  Judge- 
Advocate-General  deals  with  matters  of  discipline  and 
is  the  law  department  of  the  army,  as  the  Office  of  the 
Surgeon-General  deals  with  the  physical  welfare  of 
the  troops.  The  remaining  office  of  importance,  that 
of  the  Quartermaster-General,  is  one  that  has  charge 
of  the  payment,  feeding,  clothing,  and  transportation. 
The  present  Quartermaster  Corps  is  a  consolidation  of 
the  Office  of  the  Quartermaster-General,  the  Commis- 
sary-General, and  the  Paymaster-General  of  the  army, 
provided  by  Act  of  Congress,  August  24,  1912. 

Such  are  the  general  functions  of  the  department, 
viewed  as  a  branch  of  the  Federal  Executive.  The  power 
of  the  department,  except  as  it  directs  our  colonial 
affairs,  and  the  matter  of  rivers  and  harbors,  has  in- 
creased little  since  its  creation.  The  War  Department 
has  not  developed  in  any  such  way  as  has  the  Depart- 
ment of  Justice,  and  there  is  no  arm  of  the  Executive 
that  to-day  requires  serious  consideration  more  than 
the  War  Department.  The  United  States  spends  more 
money  on  its  army  than  any  other  nation  in  respect  to 
what  it  has  to  show  for  it.  President  Taft,  writing  in 
1913,  said:  "So  far  as  our  military  policy  is  concerned, 
it  would  seem  as  if  the  maxim  that '  the  Lord  looks  after 
children  and  drunken  men'  ought  to  be  extended  to  the 
United  States,  for  by  hook  or  crook,  through  mistakes 


WAR,  NAVY,  JUSTICE  127 

of  the  enemy,  or  through  luck  and  by  the  expenditure 
of  far  greater  treasure  and  many  more  lives  than  were 
necessary,  we  have  generally  been  successful."  l  He 
also  writes:  "I  have  not  the  comparative  figures  for  the 
cost  of  the  European  armies  and  our  own  this  year,  but 
in  1906  this  statement  which  I  made  as  Secretary  of  War 
was  true:  'Our  regular  army  to-day  amounts  in  effec- 
tive force  to  about  60,000  men,  and  it  costs  us  in  round 
numbers  about  $72,000,000  to  sustain  our  military  es- 
tablishment. France  maintains  an  army  on  the  active 
list  of  546,000  men,  and  it  costs  her  $133,000,000.  Ger- 
many maintains  an  army  which  has  upon  its  active  list 
640,000  men,  and  it  costs  her  $144,000,000  a  year  to 
maintain  it.  In  other  words,  France  has  an  army  about 
nine  times  the  size  of  ours  which  it  costs  her  substan- 
tially less  than  twice  the  sum  to  maintain,  while  Ger- 
many has  an  army  more  than  ten  times  as  large  which 
it  costs  her  just  about  double  our  sum  to  maintain.' " 2 

It  is  absurd  for  a  nation  possessing  the  vast  wealth 
of  the  United  States  to  allow  itself  to  be  so  inadequately 
protected.  December  5, 1779,  Charles  Carroll  of  Carroll- 
ton,  wrote  to  Benjamin  Franklin:  "We  have  a  good, 
though  not  a  numerous  army,  about  20,000  fine  hardy 
fellows,  as  tough  as  the  knots  of  an  old  seasoned  oak, 
well  disciplined,  well  armed,  and  pretty  well  clothed, 
commanded  by  a  man  whom  they  reverence  and  love."  3 
It  is  interesting  to  compare  this  description  of  our  army 

1  Popular  Government,  p.  248.  2  Ibid.,  p.  255. 

3  Life  and  Correspondence  of  Charles  Carroll  of  Carrollton,  vol. 
II,  p.  30. 


128  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

in  1779  with  the  above  observations  of  President  Taft, 
and  especially  with  the  report  to  the  Secretary  of  War, 
of  November  15, 1914,  of  the  Chief  of  Staff,  Major-Gen- 
eral  W.  W.  Wotherspoon.  According  to  this  report,  on 
November  15,  1914,  the  actual  strength  of  the  army, 
exclusive  of  the  Philippine  Scouts,  was  4572  officers  and 
88,444  enlisted  men.  The  authorized  strength  was  4726 
officers  and  95,977  enlisted  men.  The  army,  said  Gen- 
eral Wotherspoon,  was  therefore  154  officers  and  7533 
enlisted  men  below  its  authorized  strength.  The  Secre- 
tary of  War,  in  December,  1912,  stated  that  "outside  of 
the  regular  army,  the  only  force  of  men  who  have  re- 
ceived any  military  training  existing  in  the  United  States 
to-day  is  the  National  Guard."  General  Wotherspoon 
reported  that  on  November  15, 1914,  the  total  reported 
strength  of  the  National  Guard,  or  organized  militia, 
was  8323  officers  and  119,087  enlisted  men.  Of  the  reg- 
ular army  the  field  or  mobile  force  of  our  army  was  less 
than  52,000  enlisted  men.  Of  the  organized  militia  only 
73.87  per  cent  of  officers  and  men  attended  the  annual 
camps  of  instruction.  As  to  the  organized  militia,  Gen- 
eral Wotherspoon  said :  "  It  must,  however,  be  admitted, 
that  unless  there  be  a  material  change  in  the  laws  gov- 
erning the  organized  militia,  which  will  bring  about  a 
greater  reliance  upon  and  an  increased  control  by  the 
General  Government,  that  branch  of  our  military  es- 
tablishment cannot  be  regarded  and  depended  upon  as 
a  reliable  force."  The  report  concludes  that,  "in  look- 
ing over  the  strength  of  our  garrisons  in  foreign  pos- 
sessions, it  becomes  at  once  manifest  that  the  garrisons 


WAR,  NAVY,  JUSTICE]  129 

we  are  maintaining  there  or  propose  to  maintain  there, 
under  the  scheme  of  distribution  of  our  army  as  it  ex- 
ists at  present,  are  entirely  inadequate  for  the  need  of 
those  possessions."  As  to  conditions  at  home,  the  then 
Chief  of  Staff  said,  "That  we  cannot,  with  our  pres- 
ent strength,  rapidly  assemble  a  sufficient  force,  fully 
equipped  for  field  operations,  to  meet  such  an  expedition 
as  might  be  dispatched  against  our  shores,  is  evident." 
Worthy  of  serious  consideration  is  the  assertion:  "That 
the  great  waterway  of  the  Panama  Canal  cannot  be 
protected  against  the  operations  of  a  first-class  military 
power  by  the  present  or  proposed  garrison  we  contem- 
plate placing  there,  without  the  power  and  ability  to 
reinforce  it  rapidly  by  troops  from  the  United  States, 
is  equally  manifest." 

i  I  have  elsewhere  compared  our  defenses  with  that  of 
a  first-class  continental  power,1  and  it  is  not  the  prov- 
ince of  this  little  book  to  discuss  army  reform;  but  the 
department  of  the  Executive,  primarily  meant  to  insure 
domestic  tranquillity,  has  not  kept  pace  with  the  needs 
of  the  Government.  For  the  amount  of  money  expended 
and  for  the  proper  protection  of  the  United  States  our 
present  military  establishment  is  extremely  inadequate. 
In  his  last  report  as  Secretary  of  War,  Mr.  Stimson 
called  attention  to  "the  diffusion  of  the  army  and  the 
lack  of  tactical  organization,  which  results  in  our  hav- 
ing what  is  virtually  a  number  of  scattered  groups  of 
constabulary  rather  than  an  integral  organization  and 

1  "  Autumn  Manoeuvres  of  a  German  Army  Corps,"  Infantry 
Journal,  December,  1912. 


130  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

which  prevents  the  proper  training  and  team  work  of 
the  national  army." 

The  General  Staff  of  the  army,  on  August  12,  1912, 
made  a  report  on  "The  Organization  of  the  Land 
Forces  of  the  United  States."  This  document  contained 
the  broad  outlines  of  a  comprehensive  military  policy. 
Some  of  the  reforms  proposed  can  be  carried  out  by 
executive  action,  but  the  greater  part  of  these  reforms 
must  be  provided  by  Congress.  Treatment  of  the  army 
itself  in  time  of  peace  has  varied  under  every  Admin- 
istration, and  almost  uniformly  Congress  has  opposed 
the  recommendations  of  the  Executive  for  reforms  of 
the  army.  The  existence  of  isolated  and  small  frontier 
posts  and  garrisons  throughout  the  United  States  has 
repeatedly  been  the  subject  of  criticism  by  the  Execu- 
tive, but  so  far  Congressmen  have  been  very  loath  to 
consent  to  the  removal  of  any  body  of  troops  from 
cities  in  their  districts,  which  profit  by  the  presence  of 
such  troops. 

I  think  it  is  time  that  the  people  of  the  United  States 
read  and  ponder  General  Wotherspoon's  report  and  bear 
in  mind  the  opinion  of  the  most  pacific  of  Presidents: 
"  I  am  as  strongly  in  favor  as  any  one  can  be  of  prose- 
cuting every  plan  that  will  make  war  less  and  less  prob- 
able. I  believe  there  are  practical  plans  that  can  ac- 
complish much  in  this  direction.  I  do  not  believe  the 
plan  of  common  disarmament  is  a  practical  plan.  It 
has  been  tried  and  has  failed."  1  I  am  entirely  of  the 
opinion  here  expressed  by  President  Taft  and  I  also 
1  Popular  Government,  p.  256. 


WAR,  NAVY,  JUSTICE  131 

agree  with  his  following  conclusion:  "The  people  of 
the  United  States,  on  the  whole,  are  a  shrewd,  enter- 
prising, and  provident  people,  but  they  have  not  proven 
it  by  their  military  policy."  x 

A  morning  newspaper  of  to-day  (February  19,  1915) 
lies  on  my  table  as  I  begin  this  chapter.  Under  large 
headlines  I  read  this  report:  "London,  Feb.  18.  —  The 
immediate  effect  of  the  German  submarine  blockade  of 
the  British  Isles,  beginning  to-day,  was  to  tie  up  all 
passenger  traffic  from  England  to  Holland.  The  crews 
of  one  Danish  and  three  Norwegian  ships  at  Aarhus, 
Denmark,  refused  to-day  to  sail  for  England  and  left 
their  ships.  This  action  was  announced  by  the  Ex- 
change Telegraph  Company's  Copenhagen  correspond- 
ent in  a  dispatch  which  reported  that  the  Norwegian 
steamer  Nordcap  had  struck  a  German  mine  in  the 
Baltic  Sea  and  foundered.  All  her  crew  perished."  2 
President  Lowell,  of  Harvard  University,  writing  in 
November,  1908,  says  of  the  British  Admiralty:  "The 
system  appears  to  be  highly  satisfactory,  and  in  fact  it 
is  constantly  held  up  as  a  model  to  the  less  fortunate 

1  Popular  Government,  p.  247. 

1  wrote  this  chapter  in  February,  1915.  When  I  corrected  the 
proof  on  February  4, 1916,  I  found  no  need  for  a  revision.  "Pre- 
paredness" was  much  discussed,  and  various  plans  were  under 
consideration,  but  in  regard  to  actual  armaments  the  Federal  Gov- 
ernment was  in  exactly  the  same  position  as  it  was  a  year  before. 
I  have  elsewhere  discussed  the  subject  of  "  Preparedness."  ("  Policy 
and  Armament,"  Baltimore  American,  January  25  and  28,  February 
1  and  5, 1916.  These  articles  were  written  under  the  name  of  "X.") 

2  The  Sun,  Baltimore,  Friday  morning,  February  19,  1915,  vol. 
CLVi,  no.  82,  p.  1. 


132  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

chiefs  of  the  army." *  As  I  write,  the  whole  fabric  of  the 
English  Government  is  being  tested.  Built  up  through 
centuries  of  development  by  the  employment  of  legal 
fictions,  the  English  Government  to-day  has  seemed  to 
be  one  of  the  most  effective  Governments  in  existence, 
but  from  the  point  of  view  of  American  political  science, 
there  is  little  benefit  to  be  derived  from  a  comparison 
of  our  Federal  Executive  and  the  executive  departments 
of  the  English  Government.  The  principal  divisions  of 
the  English  executive  departments  are  the  Foreign  Of- 
fice, Colonial  Office,  India  Office,  War  Office,  Home 
Office,  the  Treasury,  the  Post-Office,  the  "Law  Offi- 
cers' Department,"  the  Admiralty,  the  Board  of  Trade, 
the  Local  Government  Board,  the  Board  of  Works,  the 
Board  of  Agriculture,  and  the  Board  of  Education.  It 
is  impossible  here  to  go  into  the  peculiarities  of  the  Eng- 
lish Government,  which  are  due  to  the  necessity  of  plac- 
ing new  wine  in  old  bottles  by  attributing  novel  functions 
to  ancient  institutions.  A  familiar  example  of  such  fic- 
tions is  that  by  which  the  Island  of  Ascension,  instead  of 
being  under  the  direction  of  the  Home  Secretary  as  an 
island,  is  brought  under  the  jurisdiction  of  the  Admiralty 
upon  the  official  announcement  that  the  island  is  to  be 
considered  a  vessel  of  war.  The  boards  I  have  enu- 
merated, in  the  words  of  Mr.  Lowell,  "are  legal  phan- 
toms that  provide  imaginary  colleagues  for  a  single 
responsible  Minister."  2   The  English  Government  is, 

1  A.  Lawrence  Lowell,  The  Government  of  England,  vol.  I,  p.  93. 
8  Ibid.,  vol.  I,  p.  84. 


WAR,  NAVY,  JUSTICE  133 

therefore,  much  more  like  our  Government  than  would 
appear  from  a  superficial  examination  of  the  names  of 
the  executive  departments,  and  each  of  these  depart- 
ments is  actually  under  the  direction  of  a  Minister  who 
is  more  or  less  in  the  position  of  the  head  of  one  of  our 
executive  departments.  The  Admiralty,  however,  is 
one  of  the  executive  departments,  and  in  fact  the  only 
one  which  is  actually  conducted  by  a  board.  This 
board  consists  of  a  First  Lord,  four  Naval  Lords,  and  a 
Civil  Lord,  together  with  the  parliamentary  and  per- 
manent Secretaries.1  The  First  Lord  is  practically  a 
Minister  of  Marine  or  Secretary  of  the  Navy,  assisted 
by  an  advisory  council.  The  British  Admiralty  has 
many  points  in  common  with  our  Navy  Department, 
in  which  our  Secretary  of  the  Navy  corresponds  to  the 
English  First  Lord,  while  the  chiefs  of  the  various 
bureaus  have  duties  quite  similar  to  those  of  the  remain- 
ing members  of  the  Admiralty,  with  the  marked  differ- 
ence that  none  of  our  executive  officers  have  seats  in  the 
legislative  branch  of  the  Government.  As  I  have  before 
pointed  out,  it  is  impossible  to  draw  any  very  close 
analogy  between  our  executive  departments  and  those 
of  foreign  Governments,  but  a  comparison  is  interesting. 
In  1798  the  sea  soldiers  of  the  United  States  passed 
from  the  control  of  the  War  Department,  and  the  newly 
created  Secretary  of  the  Navy  assumed  direction  of  the 
naval  affairs  of  the  nation.  The  War  of  1812  was  an 
overseas  war,  but  had  the  army  of  the  United  States 

1  Report  of  Commissioners  on  Administration  of  Naval  and  Mili- 
tary Departments,  Com.  Papers  (1890),  xix,  1,  pp.  viii-ix. 


134  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

been  as  efficient  as  its  navy,  the  war  might  well  have 
been  settled  on  land,  for  England  possessed  in  Canada 
vulnerable  territory.  The  Civil  War  was  a  land  war, 
but  the  navy  rendered  conspicuous  service.  In  the 
problems  of  the  national  defense,  or,  as  the  Constitu- 
tion puts  it,  securing  domestic  tranquillity  and  pro- 
viding for  the  common  defense,  there  should  be  no  poli- 
tics. Whether  our  army  and  navy  are  adequate  for 
these  purposes  is  no  more  a  question  for  a  division  of 
the  citizens  of  the  United  States  into  the  usual  political 
parties  than  is  the  question  of  whether  or  not  the  New 
York  police  force  furnishes  adequate  protection  for  life 
and  property  in  that  city. 

The  "New  Navy"  dates  from  Secretary  Whitney, 
1885-89,  and  in  the  Spanish  War,  as  well  as  in  the 
previous  wars,  rendered  conspicuously  efficient  service. 
The  army  of  the  United  States  has  no  logical  territorial 
systems  of  garrisons  and  depots.  Frontier  posts  of  by- 
gone days  still  exist  at  the  positions  in  which  they  were 
originally  placed  as  necessities  to  Indian  warfare,  and 
remain  at  these  locations  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  the 
need  which  called  for  their  original  establishment  has 
long  since  ceased  to  exist.  From  the  points  of  view  of 
discipline,  mobility,  and  administration,  the  scattering 
of  what  land  forces  the  United  States  possesses  is  very 
detrimental  to  the  army.  The  location  of  navy-yards 
and  depots  has  been  frequently  subjected  to  question, 
but  the  navy  is  not  under  the  same  disadvantage  as  the 
army  in  reference  to  the  unsystematic  location  of  garri- 
sons, for  in  the  navy  each  fighting  unit  possesses  in  it- 


WAR,  NAVY,  JUSTICE  135 

self  the  essentials  of  mobility  and  action.  Unlike  a  regi- 
ment or  greater  fighting  unit  of  the  army,  which,  in  a 
country  like  ours,  must  rely  upon  transportation  by 
railroad  or  water,  each  ship  of  the  navy  individually 
possesses  facilities  of  transportation,  subsistence,  and 
combat.  The  navy  has  been  fortunate  in  another  mat- 
ter of  great  importance.  The  majority  of  the  members 
of  most  Congresses  have  considered  themselves  ex-offi- 
cio  experts  in  army  affairs,  and  the  list  of  colonels  of 
volunteers  commissioned  in  the  Spanish  War  would 
lead  one  to  believe  that  the  opinion  is  prevalent  that 
any  one  can  successfully  command  a  regiment.  Fortu- 
nately for  the  navy,  a  similar  belief  has  not  prevailed. 
The  navy  has  not  suffered  to  the  same  extent  as  has  the 
army  from  unskilled  civilian  interference.  President 
Lowell  is  authority  for  the  statement  that  a  similar 
condition  has  existed  in  England.  To  the  Englishmen, 
however,  he  says,  "the  navy  is  a  mystery  which  ordi- 
nary men  do  not  pretend  to  understand,  and  with  which 
they  do  not  attempt  to  interfere;  and  this  is  a  security 
for  expert  management."  l  The  navy  is  admittedly  a 
matter  for  experts.  For  its  history  and  its  uses  one  must 
look  to  the  writings  of  such  men  as  the  late  Admiral 
Mahan.  For  the  study  of  the  Federal  Executive,  the 
navy  offers  little  material.  I  shall,  therefore,  attempt 
only  a  brief  consideration  of  the  navy  as  a  force  avail- 
able to  the  President  in  his  capacity  as  commander-in- 
chief  for  insuring  domestic  tranquillity. 

The  constructive  genius  of  the  American  people  has 
1  A.  Lawrence  Lowell,  The  Government  of  England,  vol.  I,  p.  102. 


136  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

been  much  more  alert  to  the  needs  of  the  navy  than  to 
the  possession  of  a  properly  trained,  equipped,  and  or- 
ganized defensive  army.  Until  the  termination  of  the 
present  European  conflict,  all  opinions  as  to  the  value 
of  naval  units  must  be  held  in  abeyance,  but  it  is  stated 
that  the  American  navy  at  the  present  time  is  in  a 
commendable "  state  of  efficiency,  whether  or  not  it  is 
adequate  in  size  for  the  protection  of  the  nation.  It 
certainly  possesses  the  best  training  school  for  officers 
that  exists,  and  the  character  of  the  training  accorded 
to  the  officers  of  the  navy  is  vital  to  the  efficiency 
of  that  branch  of  the  service.  Experts  agree  that  our 
system  of  naval  training  for  officers  is  better  than  that 
of  England.  English  writers,  especially  after  the  Boer 
War,  were  united  in  their  adverse  criticism  of  English 
army  training,  but  there  has  never  been  any  serious 
criticism  of  the  training  afforded  by  West  Point  to  what 
army  officers  the  United  States  has  graduated  from 
that  institution.  The  American  people  are  as  capable 
of  organizing  and  training  a  sufficient  force  as  are  the 
people  of  any  other  nation,  but  they  are  not  awake  to 
the  dangers  that  threaten  our  huge  and  inadequately 
protected  borders. 

The  Naval  Academy  at  Annapolis  was  formally 
opened  October  10,  1845.  Its  history  *  states  that  the 
Naval  Academy  at  Annapolis  owes  its  inception  to  the 
administrative  ability  of  George  Bancroft  as  Secre- 
tary of  the  Navy.    "Less  than  eight  months  after  as- 

1  James  Russell  Soley ,  Historical  Sketch  of  the  United  States  Naval 
Academy,  pp.  74-76. 


WAR,  NAVY,  JUSTICE  137 

suming  the  duties  of  his  office,  Bancroft  was  enabled 
to  present  to  the  country  a  fully  organized  academy, 
in  efficient  working  order,  which  was  destined  to  do  for 
the  navy  what  West  Point  had  so  long  done  for  the 
army.  He  had  accomplished  during  a  single  recess  of 
Congress  what  his  predecessors  had  for  thirty  years  in 
vain  attempted  to  secure  by  legislation."  Whatever 
matter  fully  commands  the  interest  of  the  American 
people  is  apt  to  be  well  and  satisfactorily  accomplished. 
Unfortunately,  very  little  public  interest  has  been  taken 
in  the  past  in  the  study  of  governmental  problems. 
When  the  proper  use  of  experts  in  government  is  fully 
realized,  and  when  a  proper  separation  between  political 
and  purely  expert  officers  in  the  Government  is  made, 
then  and  only  then  shall  we  begin  to  secure  thoroughly 
efficient  service  in  our  cities,  in  our  States,  and  in  our 
federal  service.  I  should  be  very  glad  to  see  the  De- 
partment of  Education  in  the  Interior  Department 
erected  into  a  Department  of  Education  whose  head 
would  rank  with  the  other  members  of  the  President's 
Cabinet,  and  I  should  like  to  see,  as  one  of  the  most 
important  functions  of  this  department,  the  establish- 
ment and  maintenance  of  a  training-school  for  public 
civil  servants  of  the  Government  similar  to  West  Point 
and  Annapolis. 

Prior  to  the  foundation  of  the  Naval  Academy,  offi- 
cers mostly  obtained  their  training  from  instruction 
given  upon  the  individual  ships  of  the  navy.  There  is 
no  comparison  between  the  efficiency  of  the  training 
thus  afforded  and  the  education  that  may  be  obtained 


138  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

at  the  present  Naval  Academy.  At  the  present  time  the 
civil  employees  of  our  diplomatic  service,  our  consular 
service,  and  our  various  administrative  branches  of  the 
Government  are  trained  in  a  much  less  satisfactory 
way  than  were  the  officers  of  the  navy  prior  to  the  foun- 
dation of  the  Naval  Academy.  We  have  learned  from 
that  experience  the  value  of  such  a  training-school. 
To-day  our  colleges  are  devoting  an  increasing  amount 
of  attention  to  instruction  in  government,  and  many 
courses  are  given  with  the  avowed  purpose  of  fitting 
students  for  government  service.  The  furtherance  of 
such  education,  however,  would  be  greatly  facilitated 
by  the  organization  of  a  governmental  school  of  admin- 
istration and  public  service.  Washington  was  in  favor 
of  a  National  University.  The  whole  basis  of  the  gov- 
ernment of  a  free  people  is  proper  education.  General 
collegiate  or  university  education  is  not  lacking  in  facili- 
ties in  this  country,  but  it  is  imperative  that  some 
method  be  devised  by  which  trained  men  may  be  reared 
for  the  work  of  the  federal  executive  administration. 

In  reference  to  this,  Secretary  Bancroft's  annual  re- 
port of  December  1,  1845,  contains  the  following  ac- 
count of  the  founding  of  the  Naval  Academy  which 
merits  consideration:  "Congress,  in  its  great  desire  to 
improve  the  navy,  had  permitted  the  department  to 
employ  professors  and  instructors  at  an  annual  cost  of 
$28,200;  and  it  had  been  used,  besides  the  few  employed 
at  the  receiving-ships  and  the  Naval  Asylum,  to  send 
professors  with  the  midshipmen  to  every  ocean  and 
every  clime.   But  the  ship  is  not  friendly  to  study,  and 


WAR,  NAVY,  JUSTICE  139 

the  office  of  professor  rapidly  declined  into  a  sinecure; 
often  not  so  much  was  done  as  the  elder  officers  would 
cheerfully  do  for  their  juniors.   The  teachers  on  board 
of  the  receiving-ship  gave  little  instruction,  or  none 
whatever;  so  that  the  expenditure  was  fruitless  of  great 
results.   Many  of  the  professors  were  able  and  willing, 
but  the  system  was  a  bad  one.  The  idea  naturally  sug- 
gested itself  of  seizing  the  time  when  the  midshipmen 
are  on  shore  and  appropriating  it  to  their  culture.   In- 
stead of  sending  migratory  professors  to  sea  with  each 
handful  of  midshipmen,  the  midshipmen  themselves, 
in  the  intervals  between  sea-duty,  might  be  collected 
in  a  body  and  devote  their  time  to  suitable  instruction. 
For  the  pay  of  the  instructors  Congress  has  provided. 
In  looking  out  for  a  modest  shelter  for  the  pupils,  I  was 
encouraged  to  ask  for  Fort  Severn,  at  Annapolis.   The 
transfer  was  readily  made  by  order  of  the  Secretary  of 
War,  and  a  school  was  immediately  organized  on  an 
unostentatious  and  frugal  plan.    This  institution,  by 
giving  some  preliminary  instruction  to  the  midshipmen 
before  their  first  cruise;  by  extending  an  affectionate 
but  firm  supervision  over  them  as  they  return  from  sea; 
by  providing  them  suitable  culture  before  they  pass 
to  a  higher  grade;  by  rejecting  from  the  service  all  who 
fail  in  capacity  or  in  good  disposition  to  use  their  time 
well,  will  go  far  to  renovate  and  improve  the  American 
navy."   The  Naval  Academy  has  done  more  than  any 
other  one  influence  "to  renovate  and  improve  the  Amer- 
ican navy,"  and  it  would  be  a  most  excellent  thing  for 
the  civil  government  of  the  United  States  if  the  same 


140  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

renovating  and  improving  process  could  be  applied  in 
the  same  manner  for  the  production  of  trained  experts 
in  government. 

In  his  first  annual  address  to  Congress,  President 
Washington,  on  January  8,  1790,  said:  "Among  the 
many  interesting  objects  which  will  engage  your  atten- 
tion, that  of  providing  for  the  common  defense  will  merit 
particular  regard.  To  be  prepared  for  war  is  one  of  the 
most  effectual  means  of  preserving  peace."  l  The  main- 
tenance of  our  army  and  navy  is  for  the  purpose  of  pre- 
serving peace.  Let  us  see  what  measure  of  preparedness 
"against"  war  (to  use  the  excellent  distinction  made  by 
the  Honorable  A.  P.  Gardner)  as  a  preservative  of  this 
peace  the  navy  affords.  In  1789,  when  the  department 
was  created,  the  navy  consisted  of  22  ships,  456  guns, 
and  3484  men.  During  the  fiscal  year  ending  June  30, 
1914,  the  enlisted  strength  of  the  navy  reached  a  total 
of  52,667  men,  and  in  May,  1914,  the  navy's  author- 
ized complement,  which  had  been  short  for  several 
years,  was  completely  filled.2  The  appropriations  for  the 
fiscal  year  1914-15  for  the  naval  establishment  amounted 
to  more  than  $140,000,000.  I  am  indebted  to  the  Hon- 
orable Franklin  D.  Roosevelt,  Assistant  Secretary  of 
the  Navy,  for  the  following  summary  of  vessels  in  the 
navy  on  February  20,  1915:  — 

1  Messages  and  Papers  of  the  Presidents,  vol.  I,  p.  65. 

2  Report  of  the  Secretary  of  the  Navy  for  191  It,  p.  25. 


of  this 
lays  dc 


The 


Not 


rides  for  the  completion  by  19LS  of  4  battle  cruisers,  S  small 


1 

10 

19 
i37 
f53 

73 
326 
259  (c) 
228 
107 

140 

360 


>13 


Auslria-H  ungary 


1 

2 
15 
80 

558 
175 

164 

84 
224 (h) 
141  (0 

11 

387 
17,689  0-) 


19,531 


e  only,  G  flag  officers,  20  cap- 


'  Coast  <i 

ipaux;  r 
nan  arti 
officers, 
as,  temr; 


ished  D<jy  wa3  due  tQ  the  ineiusjon  0f 
nant  cohine  officers  L-n(ler  ItaIy  the 
was  18; 


SEA  STRENGTH 
SHIPS 


■■'  hudluj-iief, 
Naty  Department 


■ 

«»"■ 

' 

•— 

England. 
Oermanj 
United  States 

20 

8 

3 

40 
20 
22 

13 

8 

0 

0 
0 

2 

34 
9 
11 

6 

74,^ 

n 

9 
L3 

0 
5 

!.,:.;■ 
130 
51 

40 
0 

[35 

-'7 

39 

75 
27 
30 

13 

8 

l 
2 

1     ;,n,,i    .-.1    ,,,- 

10 
7 

1 

7 

1 

1 

4 

li 

'J 

It 

s 

21  [k) 

Jl 
11 

:; 

1 

24 

22 

Is 

22 

Italy 
Austria-Hungary 

Japan  (A) 
[toly. 

„;    ,1Mi ,„„,„,„       ,,, 

■ 

.,     .     IN    ...     ,,..,.,..    ,■...,! 

'■vvE 

kSS 

SSSW 

wlUrnMt, 



ACTIVE    PEKSiiNXKI. 


M 

M* 

"^ 

««™ 

'            ' 

o 

1(a) 

2 

\  !<:<■-. \']mii\il~ 

22 

12 

Ki 

2 

22 

:fii 

21 

15 

Othet  line  officer* 

21  ' 

137 

2,508 

2,220 

1,080 

1,410 

i  905 

[,378 

039 

-  ns 

L10 

7.1 

Engineer  officers, 

BS7 

577 

811 

S26 

330 

Paj  officers 

760 

_7i  i 

231 

211 

122 

102 

75 

187 

135    '  ■ 

519 

Clia|.|;un- 

147 

24 

2,7411 

3.183 

si ',7 

147(d) 

1,569 

i  340 

119,697 

.  ■    .,.,. 

00,505 

50,050 

49,258 

10,680 

Murine  officers 

46G 

177    , 

21,414(0) 

.,  791    i  ■ 

G 

- 

— 

— 

- 

— 

Total 

,:-,W" 

7'U'.'7 

tin  .'7;j 

63,846 

55,730 

52,463 

39,913 

19,531 

... 


Office  of  Naval  Intelligence, 

Navy  Department 

Y 

i 

AUSTRIA- 

HUNGARY 

J 

Building 

Built 

Building 

umber 

Tons 

{estimated) 

Number 

Tons 

Number 

Tons 

(estimated) 

7 

187,150 

3 

60,030 

4 

93,510 

— 

— 

G 

74,613 

— 

— 

— 

— 

6 

41,700 

— 

— 

— 

2 

13,380 

— 



2 

4,888 

5 

13,815 

5 

21,216 

15 

14,203 

18 

9,450 

— 

— 

2 

272 

39 

6,852 

24 

5,886 

8 

5,842 

6 

1,686 

6 

5,370 

— 

212,355 

— 

221,526 

— 

125,982 

15 

347,508 

. 

[  battl 

e  with  the 

><  ecreas 

3  in  armor 

hich  b 

attery  and 

11  oruis 

ers  except 

I 

s  hav 

5  not  been 

Inn  fi\ 

re  yeara. 

! 

w 


WARSHIP    TONNAGE    OF    THE    PRINCIPAL    NAVAL    POWERS 
NUMBER   AND    DISPLACEMENT    OF   WARSHIPS,    BUILT    AND    BUILDING,    OF   1500   OR    MORE    TONS,    AND    OF   TORPEDO   CRAFT    OF    MORE    THAN 


GERMANY 

UNtTED  STATES- 

PBAKOE 

RUSSIA                                                             n,..v                                                  lBmu 

s„u 

Bu.-Winu 

Butf 

MM, 

*" 

«*■ 

BuiU 

** 

Bu* 

MM, 

M. 

BU,U,„„ 

B«mna 

».,« 



vumbff|        r,m. 

«•*■ 

Uzu 

»""">" 

T.,,, 

JSSU 

AW„ 

T™ 

*""»" 

CM&Q 

lta*» 

,.., 

**-*" 

*— ' 

ft. 

IW 

*"*■ 

7W 

[Mfm/al] 

■,,-,. 

1 

,.lz:,.n 

Battleahipa  '  i  Dreadnought  type] 

30 

423,350 

16 

421,7.50 

13 

285,770 

7 

187,164 

8 

189,650 

4 

117,800 

4 

8 

[93,656 

2 

41,600 

4 

122,400 

_ 

_ 

7 

159,409 

62,644 

7 

187,160 

; 

Q0.080 

03  ',10 

Battleships      Pre  dreadw bl 

in 

■  ■ 

242,800 

22 

is 

21,2,1,7.5 

13 

191,380 

7 

■is  750 

s 

06,100 

IS 

2 

8,168 

12.900 

8,800 

9,086 

10,380 

6 

187,800 

28,600 

88,749 

112,000 

2 

2 

5! ' 

■i 

[28,000 

\.,.,...-.-.i  ,  ■  ii»  rs 

106,800 

G 

04,245 

11 

149,295 

20 

201.724 

13 

138  183 

6 

74,020 

2 

71 

382,815 

17 

67,000 

150,747 

26,900 

14 

00,4 10 

9 

16,005 

13 

57,915 

9 

53,600 

i-    ..i. 

2 

1,888 

i..i[ir.ii>  boat  destroy  ere 

125,850 

21 

21,771) 

130 

07,094 

24 

14,400 

51 

35,068 

11 

11,956 

84 

35,812 

3 

2,053 

50 

1 ,670 

'il 

36,748 

53,064 

16,807 

1 1,203 

3,460 

[torpedo  boats 

ifl 

11,488 

13 

135 

18,426 

27 

3.017 

14 

2,132 

1 1 ,684 

2 

272 

19 

6,852 

Jl 

Submarines 

75 

30^62 

22 

17,236 

27 

14,140 

is 

14,400 

30 

- 

'19 

- 

64 

27,940 

-- 

14,766 

13 

2.  072 

- 

1,200 

30 

6,506 

19 

13.284 

10 

.5,17.5 

s 

5,842 

6 

1 ,680 

0 

170 

Total  tons  bull)  and  total  tom 

building 

2,157,850 

~ 

556,256 

- 

951,713 

- 

354,864 

- 

7(55,133 

- 

129,756 

~ 

688.840 

- 

2 11, 07.5 

- 

619,640 

~ 

180,276 

- 

270,861 

- 

107,957 

285,400 

~ 

213,365 

321,620 

- 

To1  ii  tone  buill  and  building 

2,714,106 

1,306,577 

894 

389 

899JB1G 

699,016 

678,818 

107,815 

347,608 

iW,^^.™^*) 

mMH^ 

MO. 

!W 

*«*» 

ta. 

i   i-     c   II 

2167Mfi 

Gre  t  Br  t    n 

2,714,100 
[,306,577 
899,915 
394,889 
699,916 
678,818 
497,815 
347,508 

United  Btatea 

l''r M                                                 .    . 

[talj 

llll      -1    L 

'1:51 

765 
688 
51( 

28E 

271 

713 
133 

SIM 

140 

4.  ill 

S01 

United  Stated 

[14) 

A 


WAR,  NAVY,  JUSTICE 


141 


SUMMARY    OF   VESSELS    IN    THE    UNITED    STATES 
NAVY,    FEBRUARY    20,    1915 


Fit  for  service, 

including  those 

under  repair 

Under 
construction 

Authorized 

Total 

Type 

*- 

s 

s 

Displace- 
ment 
{tons) 

-o 

s 

3 

Displace- 
ment 
(toils) 

s 

Dis- 
place- 
ment 
{tons) 

s 

s 
te; 

Displace- 
ment 
(tons) 

Battleships,  1st  line 
Battleships,  2d  line 
Armored  cruisers  .  . 
Cruisers,  1st  class.. 
Cruisers,  2d  class .  . 
Cruisers,  3d  class.  . 
Monitors 

Submarines 

Tenders  to  torpedo 

10 

23 

10 

5 

4 

15 

9 

50 

19 

36 

7 

30 

5 

4 

2 

22 

16 

45 

8 

20 

221,650 

308,146 

140,080 

46,465 

25,065 

48,748 

32,944 

33,995 

3,365 

12,440 

20,892 
27,890 
26,595 
25,400 

9,000 
*232,401 

9,476 
18,024 
43,333 

45,101 

7 

12 

22 

2 

1 
1 

2 

213,800 

12,992 

11,788 

10,730 

10,000 
8,500 

29,000 

6 
6 

6,660 

17 

23 

10 

5 

4 

15 

9 

68 

19 

58 

9 

30 

6 

5 

2 

24 

16 

45 

8 

20 

435,450 

308,146 

140,080 

46,465 

25,065 

48,748 

32,944 

53,647 

3,365 

24,228 

31,622 

27,890 

Transports 

Supply  ships 

Hospital  ships 

36,595 

33,900 

9,000 

*261,401 

Converted  yachts.  . 
Tugs 

9,476 
18,024 

Special  type 

Unserviceable  for 
war  purposes .... 

43,333 
45,101 

Total 

340 

♦1,331,010 

47 

296,810 

6,660 

393 

*1,634,480 

*  Excepting  the  Justin. 

I  am  also  indebted  to  Mr.  Roosevelt  for  the  accom- 
panying comparative  tables  of  foreign  navies  prepared 
by  the  Office  of  Naval  Intelligence  as  of  July,  1914.  "  No 
attempt,"  Mr.  Roosevelt  advised  me  on  March  15, 
1915,  "has  been  made  to  bring  these  up  to  date,  owing 
to  the  conflicting  reports  of  losses  and  new  construc- 
tion during  the  war." 

Whether  or  not  the  United  States  possesses  an  ade- 
quate navy  is  at  present  a  much-mooted  question,  but  a 
discussion  of  this  question  is  outside  the  limits  of  this 


142  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

book.  From  the  latest  recommendations  of  the  experts 
in  the  Navy  Department  the  layman  would  be  led  to 
believe  that  our  navy  is  at  the  present  time  not  entirely 
satisfactory  to  the  men  among  us  who  should  be  best 
qualified  to  express  an  opinion.  If  there  is  any  serious 
question  of  the  adequacy  of  our  army  and  navy  for  the 
purpose  of  the  Federal  Government,  every  sane  citizen 
of  the  United  States  should  advise  himself  upon  this 
serious  question  and  see  that  the  conclusion  he  forms 
becomes  an  effective  part  of  that  public  opinion  of  the 
nation  which  causes  Congress  and  the  Federal  Execu- 
tive to  take  action.1 

1  I  wrote  the  above  in  February,  1915.  When  I  corrected  the 
proof  on  February  7,  1916,  I  found,  unfortunately,  no  need  for 
revision.  A  National  Security  Congress  was  held  in  Washington, 
January  20,  21,  and  22,  1916,  under  the  auspices  of  the  National 
Security  League,  and  I  attended  this  Congress  as  a  delegate.  In  a 
letter  to  this  Congress,  ex-President  Roosevelt  said:  "For  eighteen 
months,  with  this  world-cyclone  before  our  eyes,  we  as  a  nation  have 
sat  supine  without  preparing  in  any  shape  or  way.  It  is  an  actual 
fact  that  there  has  not  been  one  soldier,  one  rifle,  one  gun,  one  boat, 
added  to  the  American  army  or  navy,  so  far,  because  of  anything 
that  has  occurred  in  "this  war,  and  not  the  slightest  step  has  yet 
been  taken  looking  toward  the  necessary  preparedness."  At  the 
dinner,  given  by  the  National  Security  Congress  on  January  22, 
Senator  Henry  Cabot  Lodge  of  Massachusetts,  said:  "I  served  in 
the  House  some  years  ago,  on  the  Naval  Committee.  I  am  at  this 
moment  an  unworthy  member  of  the  Senate  Committee  on  Naval 
Affairs,  and  I  have  tried  to  inform  myself  in  regard  to  the  navy. 
. . .  There  is  the  shortage  of  men.  The  Secretary  has  sent  in  the  re- 
port of  Admiral  Fletcher,  made  on  the  15th  of  August  last,  and  in 
that  he  describes  the  shortage  of  men.  At  the  June  inspection  one 
division  was  short  1350  men.  .  .  .  We  have  no  scouts.  We  have  no 
fast  battle  cruisers.  The  Bluecher,  which  was  sunk  in  the  North 
Sea,  was  sunk  because  she  was  the  slowest  of  the  German  ships. 
She  was  faster  than  any  ship  in  our  navy."  Criticizing  the  slowness 


WAR,  NAVY,  JUSTICE  143 

In  addition  to  the  Departments  of  War  and  the  Navy, 
the  Department  of  Justice  most  certainly  exercises  its 
functions  for  the  purpose  of  "insuring  domestic  tran- 
quillity." The  Judiciary  Bill  was  debated  in  the  Sen- 
ate in  July,  1789.  This  bill,  which  had  been  prepared 
by  a  committee  of  which  Charles  Carroll  of  Carrollton 
was  a  member,  was  bitterly  opposed  by  some  of  the 
members  of  the  Senate.  "I  opposed  this  bill  from  the 
beginning,"  writes  William  Maclay.  "It  certainly  is  a 
vile  law  system,  calculated  for  expense  and  with  a  de- 
sign to  draw  by  degrees  all  law  business  into  the  Federal 
Courts.  The  Constitution  is  meant  to  swallow  all  the 
State  Constitutions  by  degrees  and  thus  to  swallow,  by 
degrees,  all  the  State  Judiciaries."  l  The  "meet  person," 
for  whose  appointment  as  Attorney-General  this  act 
provided,  to-day  has  charge  of  executive  and  adminis- 
trative matters  of  a  nature  which  might  be  held  to  give 
some  color  of  reason  to  Senator  Maclay's  prediction.  I 
have  already  discussed  the  development  of  the  office  of 
Attorney- General.  Its  functions  are  of  very  great  in- 
terest. 

The  department  as  it  exists  to-day  performs  two  sorts 

in  building  submarines,  he  said:  "The  Schley  was  the  first  one  au- 
thorized. It  was  authorized  on  the  30th  of  June,  1914.  The  contract 
was  let  the  following  March  —  March  of  1915.  In  the  bulletin  of 
January  10,  1916,  it  appears  that  nothing  has  been  done  upon  her 
yet.  How  long  do  you  think  is  the  contract  time  for  the  Schley, 
the  first  of  our  sea-going  submarines?  I  was  astonished  when  I 
found  out.  Thirty-six  months,  three  years!  She  is  not  contracted 
to  be  delivered  until  March,  1918,  and  if  we  want  submarines,  wo 
want  them  now." 

1  Journal  of  William  Maclay,  p.  117. 


144  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

of  duties.  It  has  certain  functions  relating  to  the  courts 
of  the  United  States,  and  it  is  the  Law  Department  of 
the  United  States.  The  Attorney-General,  the  fourth 
member  of  the  Cabinet,  is  the  head  of  the  department. 
While  he  has  no  control  over  the  judges  who  constitute 
the  judiciary,  he  assists  the  President  in  their  appoint- 
ment. The  clerks  of  the  courts  are  appointed  by  the 
judges,  but  United  States  marshals,  whose  duties  corre- 
spond to  those  of  a  sheriff  in  a  state  court,  are  appointed 
by  the  President  upon  the  advice  of  the  Attorney-Gen- 
eral. The  judges,  the  clerks,  and  the  marshals  are  all 
members  of  the  Department  of  Justice,  and  the  ac- 
counts of  the  judges  and  clerks  are  under  the  supervi- 
sion of  the  Attorney-General.  Some  knowledge  of  the 
organization  of  the  courts  is  necessary  to  an  understand- 
ing of  the  work  of  the  department,  but  a  discussion  of 
the  functions  of  the  courts  is  not  within  the  scope  of 
this  book.  It  will  be  a  matter  of  surprise  to  many  peo- 
ple to  learn  that  the  department  has  anything  to  do 
with  the  courts,  except  as  prosecutor;  but  as  the  de- 
partment has  developed,  its  head  has  come,  more  and 
more,  to  hold  a  position  analogous  to  that  held  by  the 
Minister  of  Justice  of  many  European  Governments. 
The  relation  of  the  department  to  the  courts,  however, 
extends  only  to  matters  of  administration.  It  has  no 
control  over  the  judgments  of  the  courts,  although  in 
the  matter  of  the  amount  of  fines  or  the  length  of  im- 
prisonment in  federal  cases,  the  district  attorneys  are 
usually  consulted  by  the  judges,  and  all  matters  of  ap- 
plications for  pardons  or  paroles  are  passed  upon  by 


WAR,  NAVY,  JUSTICE  145 

the  department  before  the  President  extends  his  clem- 
ency. After  I  have  given  a  brief  account  of  the  courts, 
I  shall  take  up  the  organization  of  the  Department  of 
Justice. 

The  United  States  is  divided  into  nine  judicial  cir- 
cuits. The  First  Circuit  comprises  Maine,  New  Hamp- 
shire, Massachusetts,  and  Rhode  Island.  The  Second 
Circuit  is  composed  of  Vermont,  New  York,  and  Con- 
necticut; while  Pennsylvania,  New  Jersey,  and  Dela- 
ware make  up  the  Third  Circuit.  The  Fourth  Circuit, 
in  addition  to  Virginia  and  Maryland,  contains  West 
Virginia  and  North  and  South  Carolina.  The  Fifth  Cir- 
cuit covers  a  great  deal  of  territory,  including  these 
States:  Texas,  Louisiana,  Mississippi,  Alabama,  Florida, 
and  Georgia.  The  Sixth  Circuit  is  peculiar  in  shape, 
running  from  north  to  south,  and  includes  Michigan, 
Ohio,  Kentucky,  and  Tennessee.  Wisconsin,  Illinois,  and 
Indiana  are  in  the  Seventh  Circuit;  while  the  Eighth 
Circuit  is  composed  of  thirteen  States  —  Arkansas, 
Missouri,  Iowa,  Minnesota,  North  and  South  Dakota, 
Nebraska,  Kansas,  Oklahoma,  New  Mexico,  Colo- 
rado, Wyoming,  and  Utah.  The  Ninth  Circuit  takes  in 
Alaska  and  Hawaii,  as  well  as  the  States  on  the  Pacific 
Coast  of  Washington,  Oregon,  and  California.  Montana, 
Idaho,  Nevada,  and  Arizona  are  also  in  this  circuit. 
Porto  Rico,  although  a  part  of  the  United  States,  is  not 
in  any  of  the  nine  circuits. 

At  the  head  of  each  of  the  circuits  is  one  of  the  nine 
justices  of  the  Supreme  Court,  who  is  nominally  the 
presiding  judge  of  the  circuit.  Each  of  these  circuits  is 


146  THE   FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

divided  into  federal  districts,  of  which  there  are  eighty- 
seven.  No  State  is  less  than  a  federal  district  and  some 
great  States  like  New  York  are  divided  into  several  dis- 
tricts. In  each  of  these  is  a  District  Court,  with  its 
judge,  clerk,  attorney,  marshal,  and  other  oflicers,  and 
in  these  District  Courts  all  violations  of  the  laws  of 
the  United  States  are  primarily  prosecuted.  From  the 
District  Courts  appeal  may  be  taken  to  the  Circuit 
Courts  of  Appeals,  of  which  there  is  one  in  each  of  the 
nine  circuits,  and  from  these  Circuit  Courts  of  Appeals, 
in  certain  cases,  there  may  be  a  further  appeal  to  the 
Supreme  Court,  with  its  nine  judges  sitting  in  Wash- 
ington. There  are  thirty-four  circuit  judges,  and  ninety- 
one  district  judges,  The  latter  sit  both  in  the  District 
Courts  and  in  the  Circuit  Courts  of  Appeals.  Other 
courts  of  the  United  States  are  the  Court  of  Claims, 
with  five  judges  in  Washington,  and  the  courts  of  the 
District  of  Columbia,  with  seventeen  judges.  There  are, 
also,  thirty-four  judges  in  Territorial  Courts. 

The  Attorney-General  and  the  officers  who  are  di- 
rectly responsible  to  him  have  charge  of  the  prepara- 
tion and  conduct  of  all  cases  in  which  the  United  States 
is  concerned.  In  each  of  the  federal  districts  there  is  a 
federal  grand  jury  or  inquest,  which  investigates  all 
violations  of  the  criminal  laws  of  the  United  States, 
and  United  States  commissioners,  who  hold  a  position 
analogous  to  committing  magistrates  or  justices  of  the 
peace.  It  may  be  of  interest  here  to  note  the  manner  in 
which  criminal  cases  come  before  the  District  Courts. 
A  district  attorney  may,  upon  his  own  responsibility, 


WAR,  NAVY,  JUSTICE  147 

cause  the  arrest  of  any  person  accused  of  an  infraction 
of  the  federal  laws,  or  the  grand  jury  may  itself  origi- 
nate an  investigation,  and,  without  the  suggestion  of 
the  department,  find  an  indictment;  but  usually  infor- 
mation concerning  a  violation  of  the  law  is  reported  to 
some  one  of  the  district  attorneys  or  to  the  depart- 
ment in  Washington  by  one  of  the  other  executive  de- 
partments. The  Treasury  Department  has  its  "secret 
service"  for  the  detection  of  counterfeiting  and  other 
allied  matters,  the  Post-Office  Department  has  numer- 
ous post-office  inspectors,  while  there  are  internal  reve- 
nue agents,  national-bank  examiners,  and  a  host  of 
other  investigators,  beside  the  agents  of  the  Bureau  of 
Investigation  of  the  Department  of  Justice.  Usually, 
a  warrant  for  the  arrest  of  the  accused  person  is  issued 
by  one  of  the  United  States  commissioners,  of  whom 
there  are  several  in  each  district.  The  accused  is  then 
given  a  public  hearing  before  the  commissioner,  who 
may  dismiss  the  charges  if  he  deems  them  unsupported 
or  if  the  accused  offers  sufficient  evidence  to  excuse  his 
action.  If  the  commissioner  considers  there  is  sufficient 
evidence  of  a  crime,  the  accused  is  held  for  the  action 
of  the  grand  jury,  which  sits  in  secret  to  hear  the 
government  case,  in  order  that  no  man  may  be  sub- 
jected to  the  ignominy  of  a  public  trial  unless  there 
appears  to  be  a  strong  prima-facie  case  against  him. 
Sometimes  the  grand  jury  takes  up  a  case  and  finds  an 
indictment  without  any  previous  arrest  or  any  hearing 
before  a  commissioner;  but  since  the  grand  jury  is 
composed  of  twenty-three  reputable  and  often  promi- 


148  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

nent  members  of  the  community  and  the  vote  of  twelve 
of  them  is  necessary  for  the  finding  of  an  indictment, 
the  rights  of  the  accused  are  most  carefully  protected. 
When  an  indictment  is  presented  to  the  court,  so  care- 
fully has  the  case  been  examined  that  it  is  often  said 
that  when  a  person  is  indicted  in  the  federal  court  he 
had  best  plead  guilty  promptly  and  receive  the  smaller 
penalty  that  such  action  usually  merits. 

The  Department  of  Justice,  as  the  Law  Department 
of  the  United  States  Government,  may  be  divided  into 
three  general  divisions,  headquarters  of  the  Attorney- 
General  in  Washington,  department  solicitors  and 
attorneys  in  Washington  and  New  York,  and  the  dis- 
trict attorneys.  All  of  these  are  the  direct  subordinates 
of  the  Attorney-General.  At  headquarters  in  Wash- 
ington, besides  the  Attorney-General  are  the  Solicitor- 
General,  the  Assistant  to  the  Attorney-General,  six 
Assistant  Attorneys-General,  numerous  special  assist- 
ants to  the  Attorney-General,  attorneys,  permanent 
assistant  attorneys,  and  law  clerks.  In  addition  to 
these  is  a  large  force,  including  the  Chief  Clerk  and 
Superintendent  of  Buildings,  Private  Secretary,  Super- 
intendent and  Assistant  Superintendent  of  Prisons, 
Appointment  Clerk,  Attorney  in  Charge  of  Pardons, 
Disbursing  Clerk,  Attorney  in  Charge  of  Titles,  Assist- 
ant Examiners,  Chief  of  Division  of  Investigation, 
Chief  of  Division  of  Accounts,  Chief  Bookkeeper,  Libra- 
rian, stenographers,  clerks,  etc. 

The  second  division  consists  of  the  department  soli- 
citors and  attorneys.    In  Washington  there  are  the 


WAR,  NAVY,  JUSTICE  149 

Solicitor  for  the  Post-Office  Department,  the  Assistant 
Attorney -General  for  the  Department  of  the  Interior, 
the  solicitors  and  assistants  for  the  Departments  of 
State,  the  Treasury,  and  Commerce,  and  the  Solicitor 
of  Internal  Revenue.  In  New  York  there  is  an  Assist- 
ant Attorney-General  in  charge  of  the  Customs  Divi- 
sion, with  one  Deputy  Assistant  Attorney-General, 
five  attorneys,  and  seven  special  attorneys. 

The  third  division  of  the  department  comprises  the 
eighty-seven  district  attorneys,  one  hundred  and  sev- 
enty-five assistant  district  attorneys  (.approximately), 
and  one  hundred  (approximately)  special  assistant 
attorneys  in  the  various  parts  of  the  United  States.1 
The  Attorney-General,  as  head  of  the  Department  of 
Justice  and  chief  law  officer  of  the  Government,  repre- 
sents the  United  States  in  all  matters  involving  legal 
questions.  He  gives  advice  and  opinions,  when  they 
are  required  by  the  President  or  by  the  heads  of  the 
other  executive  departments,  on  questions  of  law  aris- 
ing in  the  administration  of  their  respective  depart- 
ments, and  appears  personally  in  the  Supreme  Court 
of  the  United  States  in  cases  of  especial  gravity  and 
importance.  He  exercises  a  general  superintendence 
and  direction  over  United  States  attorneys  and  mar- 
shals in  all  judicial  districts  in  the  United  States  and 
Territories,  and  provides  special  counsel  for  the  United 
States  whenever  required  by  any  department  of  the 
Government. 

The  Solicitor-General  assists  the  Attorney-General 

1  Register  of  the  Department  of  Justice,  1915. 


150  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

in  the  performance  of  his  departmental  duties,  and  by 
special  provision  of  law,  in  case  of  a  vacancy  in  the 
office  of  Attorney-General,  or  of  his  absence  or  dis- 
ability, exercises  all  those  duties.  Under  the  direction 
of  the  Attorney-General,  he  has  special  charge  of  the 
business  of  the  Government  in  the  Supreme  Court  of 
the  United  States,  and  is  assisted  in  the  conduct  and 
argument  of  cases  therein  by  the  Assistant  Attorneys- 
General.  He  also,  with  the  approval  of  the  Attorney- 
General,  prepares  opinions  rendered  to  the  President 
and  the  heads  of  the  executive  departments,  and  con- 
fers with  and  directs  the  law  officers  of  the  Govern- 
ment throughout  the  country  in  the  performance  of 
their  duties.  When  the  Attorney-General  so  directs, 
any  case  in  which  the  United  States  is  interested,  in 
any  court  of  the  United  States,  may  be  conducted  and 
argued  by  the  Solicitor-General,  and  he  may  be  sent 
by  the  Attorney-General  to  attend  to  the  interests  of 
the  United  States  in  any  state  court,  or  elsewhere. 

The  Assistant  to  the  Attorney-General,  popularly 
known  as  the  "Chief  Trust  Buster,"  has  special  charge 
of  all  suits  and  other  matters  arising  under  the  Federal 
Anti-Trust  and  Interstate  Commerce  Laws,  and  has 
under  his  direction  a  large  number  of  special  assistants 
to  the  Attorney- General  who  have  personal  direction 
of  the  big  anti-trust  cases. 

The  several  Assistant  Attorneys-General  assist  the 
Attorney-General  in  the  performance  of  his  duties, 
and  especially  in  the  argument  of  cases  in  the  Supreme 
Court  and  in  the  preparation  of  legal  opinions.    One 


WAR,  NAVY,  JUSTICE  151 

Assistant  Attorney-General  is  charged  with  defending 
suits  in  the  Court  of  Claims  and  one  with  the  defense 
of  Indian  depredation  claims,  while  another  is  in  charge 
of  the  interests  of  the  Government  in  all  matters  of 
reappraisement  and  classification  of  imported  goods 
in  litigation  before  the  several  boards  of  United  States 
General  Appraisers. 

The  Assistant  Attorneys-General  and  the  solicitors 
for  the  several  executive  departments,  under  the  pro- 
visions of  sections  349-50,  Revised  Statutes,  exercise 
their  functions  under  the  supervision  and  control  of 
the  Attorney-General.  They  are  the  Assistant  Attor- 
ney-General for  the  Department  of  the  Interior,  the 
Solicitor  for  the  Department  of  State,  the  Solicitor  for 
the  Treasury,  the  Solicitor  of  Internal  Revenue,  the 
Solicitor  for  the  Post-Office  Department,  and  the  Soli- 
citor of  the  Department  of  Commerce. 

The  Assistant  Attorney-General  for  the  Interior 
Department  is  the  chief  law  officer  of  that  department. 
All  appeals  from  the  General  Land  Office  are  sent  to  his 
office  for  consideration.  Oral  arguments  are  heard  by 
him  in  the  more  important  cases,  or  by  brief;  and  deci- 
sions are  prepared  under  his  supervision  for  the  signa- 
ture of  the  Secretary  or  First  Assistant  Secretary,  as 
the  case  may  be.  He  is  aided  in  this  and  his  other  work 
by  a  number  of  assistant  attorneys. 

The  Solicitor  for  the  Department  of  State  advises 
the  Secretary  and  Assistant  Secretaries  upon  questions 
of  municipal  and  international  law  referred  to  him, 
passes  upon  claims  of  citizens  of  the  United  States 


152  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

against  foreign  Governments,  claims  of  subjects  or  citi- 
zens of  foreign  Governments  against  the  United  States, 
and  upon  applications  for  the  extradition  of  criminals. 
The  Assistant  Solicitor,  who  acts  as  Solicitor  in  the 
absence  of  the  latter,  has  general  charge  of  extradition 
and  citizenship  matters. 

The  Solicitor  of  the  Treasury  is  charged  with  the 
supervision  of  much  of  the  litigation  of  the  Govern- 
ment and  gives  the  necessary  instructions  to  United 
States  attorneys,  marshals,  and  clerks  of  courts  in  pro- 
ceedings appertaining  to  the  suits  under  his  superintend- 
ence. Among  his  other  duties  he  makes  recommen- 
dations on  offers  of  compromise  (except  in  post-office 
cases  and  in  internal-revenue  cases  before  judgment), 
approves  the  bonds  of  United  States  assistant  treas- 
urers, collectors  of  internal  revenue,  and  department 
disbursing  clerks,  and  examines  all  official  bonds  filed 
in  the  Treasury  Department.  He  also  issues  distress 
warrants  against  delinquent  collectors  and  other  officers 
receiving  public  money,  and,  as  the  law  officer  of  the 
Treasury  Department,  gives  legal  advice  to  the  Secre- 
tary and  other  officers. 

A  Solicitor  of  Internal  Revenue  was  added  to  the 
Internal  Revenue  Office  corps  by  the  Act  of  July  13, 
1866, 1  but  by  the  Act  of  June  22,  1870, 2  organizing  the 
Department  of  Justice,  the  Solicitor  was  formally 
transferred  to  that  department.  He  is  the  law  officer 
and  legal  adviser  of  the  Commissioner  of  Internal  Reve- 
nue. The  only  duties  of  his  of  which  mention  is  made 
1  14  U.S.  Stat.  L.  170.  2  17  U.S.  Stat.  L.  162. 


WAR,  NAVY,  JUSTICE  153 

by  the  law  are  in  connection  with  internal  revenue  com- 
promise cases.1 

The  Solicitor  of  the  Department  of  Commerce,  as 
the  legal  adviser  for  the  Secretary  and  the  chiefs  of  the 
various  bureaus,  prepares  and  examines  all  contracts 
and  bonds  entered  into  or  required  by  the  department, 
and  renders  such  legal  services  in  connection  with  mat- 
ters arising  in  the  administrative  work  as  may  be  re- 
quired of  him  by  the  Attorney-General. 

The  Public  Lands  Division  was  created  by  the 
Attorney-General  November  16,  1909.  To  it  are  as- 
signed all  suits  and  proceedings  concerning  the  enforce- 
ment of  the  public  land  law,  including  suits  or  proceed- 
ings to  set  aside  conveyances  of  allotted  lands.  The 
duties  of  the  disbursing  clerk  of  the  department  show 
the  extent  of  its  functions.  He  disburses  funds  from 
more  than  forty  appropriations  under  the  direction  of 
the  Attorney-General,  including  the  salaries  of  the 
justices  of  the  Supreme  Court,  the  judges  of  the  other 
United  States  Courts,  the  United  States  attorneys, 
marshals,  and  other  court  officials,  and  of  the  officials 
of  the  department  proper.  He  also  disburses  the  con- 
tingent expenses  of  the  department,  and  other  miscel- 
laneous appropriations. 

The  superintendent  of  prisons  has  charge  of  all  mat- 
ters relating  to  United  States  prisons  and  prisoners, 
including  their  support  in  both  state  and  federal  peni- 
tentiaries, in  reform  schools,  and  in  county  jails,  and 
is  ex-officio  president  of  the  boards  of  parole  for  the 
1  U.S.  Rev.  Stat.,  sec.  3229. 


154  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

United  States  penitentiaries  and  the  president  of  the 
board  of  parole  for  United  States  prisoners  in  each 
State  or  county  institution  used  for  their  confinement. 

The  appointment  clerk  has  charge  of  all  matters 
relating  to  applications,  recommendations,  and  ap- 
pointments, and  prepares  commissions  and  appoint- 
ments for  the  officers  and  employees  of  the  department 
in  Washington,  and  for  United  States  judges,  attor- 
neys, and  marshals,  and  other  officers  under  the  de- 
partment. There  are  also  the  attorney  in  charge  of 
pardons  and  the  attorney  in  charge  of  titles  of  lands 
belonging  to  or  sought  to  be  acquired  by  the  Gov- 
ernment for  public  purposes.  There  are  two  remain- 
ing divisions  which  require  notice.  The  Division  of 
Accounts  examines  accounts  payable  from  judiciary 
appropriations,  including  accounts  of  United  States 
marshals,  attorneys,  clerks,  and  commissioners.  The 
Division  of  Investigation  has  general  supervision  of 
the  examination  of  the  offices  and  records  of  the  federal 
court  officials  throughout  the  United  States,  and  di- 
rects the  work  of  all  the  special  agents  and  accountants 
of  the  department  employed  to  collect  evidence  or  to 
make  investigations  of  any  kind. 

The  Department  of  Justice  stands  in  the  same  rela- 
tion to  the  United  States  as  the  law  department  of  any 
great  corporation  stands  to  the  corporation.  It  handles 
all  the  law  matters  of  the  United  States  Government, 
both  civil  and  criminal.  The  civil  matters  of  the  Gov- 
ernment are  much  the  same  as  the  ordinary  business 
questions  presented  to  the  law  department  of  any  great 


WAR,  NAVY,  JUSTICE  155 

corporation,  —  suits  on  surety  bonds,  suits  for  breach 
of  contracts  for  public  buildings,  and  all  manner  of  civil 
cases.  Wherever  a  right  of  the  United  States  or  one 
of  its  criminal  laws  is  violated,  the  department  takes 
charge  of  the  claim  of  the  Government  or  prosecutes 
the  offender.  Certain  classes  of  offenses  may  cause  both 
civil  and  criminal  procedure  on  the  part  of  the  United 
States,  as  in  the  case  of  prosecutions  under  the  Sherman 
Anti-Trust  Act.  This  act  provides  that  where  a  com- 
bination exists  in  restraint  of  trade  unlawfully,  the 
United  States  may  institute  civil  proceedings  to  dis- 
solve the  combination,  and  at  the  same  time  may  pro- 
ceed criminally  against  the  individual  offenders.  An 
important  example  of  both  civil  and  criminal  prosecu- 
tions is  found  in  the  cases  against  the  so-called  "Bath- 
Tub  Trust."  It  was  alleged  by  the  Government  that  a 
combination  of  individuals  and  corporations  had  com- 
bined illegally  to  raise  prices.  A  civil  proceeding  having 
for  its  purpose  the  dissolution  of  the  combination  was 
instituted  in  the  United  States  Circuit  Court  for  Mary- 
land, while  at  the  same  time  criminal  proceedings  by 
way  of  indictment  were  brought  in  the  Eastern  Dis- 
trict of  Michigan.  The  civil  proceedings  terminated  in 
the  dissolution  of  the  combination.  The  criminal  pro- 
ceedings resulted  in  a  disagreement  of  the  trial  jury. 
Violations  of  the  customs  laws  and  of  the  internal- 
revenue  laws  also  give  rise  to  both  civil  and  criminal 
proceedings. 

The  criminal  work  of  the  Department  of  Justice  is 
by  far  the  most  unique  and  interesting.    The  United 


156  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

States  has  a  Criminal  Code  which  was  re-codified  De- 
cember 1,  1909.  In  this  Criminal  Code  most  of  the 
crimes  against  the  United  States  are  dealt  with,  but 
outside  of  the  code  are  numerous  important  laws, 
among  which  are  the  so-called  White-Slave  Act  and 
the  Pure  Food  and  Drug  Act. 

It  must  be  remembered  that  the  Department  of  Jus- 
tice deals  only  with  violations  of  federal  laws.  It  has 
nothing  to  do  with  local  offenses,  which  are  taken  care 
of  by  the  authorities  of  the  various  States.  Murder, 
arson,  rape,  and  the  usual  felonies  and  misdemeanors 
are  taken  care  of,  save  in  certain  unusual  circumstances, 
by  the  prosecuting  attorneys  of  cities  or  counties  who 
are  state  officers.  It  will  be  interesting,  in  order  that 
the  character  of  federal  cases  may  be  understood,  to 
look  at  the  headings  of  some  of  the  chapters  of  the 
Criminal  Code.  The  offenses  are  classified  in  the  chap- 
ters according  to  their  nature;  for  instance,  offenses 
against  the  existence  of  the  Government  are  treason, 
inciting  or  engaging  in  rebellion  or  insurrection,  crimi- 
nal correspondence  with  foreign  Governments,  sedi- 
tious conspiracy,  etc.  Offenses  against  other  nations 
are  mostly  those  which  present  violations  of  neutrality, 
such  as  arming  vessels  against  people  at  peace  with 
the  United  States,  or  enlisting  or  equipping  expeditions 
against  such  people.  There  are  laws  to  protect  the  elec- 
tive franchise  and  civil  rights  of  citizens.  A  very  in- 
teresting decision  in  reference  to  this  class  of  cases  was 
one  recently  rendered  by  the  United  States  District 
Court  for  Maryland,  holding  that  the  use  of  trick  bal- 


WAR,  NAVY,  JUSTICE  157 

lots  in  elections,  with  the  purpose  to  make  it  more 
difficult  for  negro  voters  to  exercise  their  right  of  fran- 
chise, came  under  one  of  these  sections.  In  this  par- 
ticular case  the  ballots  were  so  arranged  that  the  name 
of  the  favored  candidate  appeared  always  in  the  first 
place,  while  the  names  of  the  other  three  candidates 
appeared  sometimes  second,  sometimes  third,  and 
sometimes  fourth. 

The  class  of  offenses,  such  as  bribery  of  an  officer  of 
the  United  States,  injuries  to  fortifications,  harbor 
defenses,  etc.,  stealing  public  property,  falsely  pretend- 
ing to  be  an  officer  of  the  United  States,  are  all  classed 
as  offenses  against  the  operation  of  the  Government. 
Then  there  are  a  number  of  laws  to  prevent  perjury 
in  trials  in  the  United  States  Courts,  bribery  of  jurors, 
judges,  or  witnesses,  and  other  offenses,  in  order  that 
public  justice  may  not  be  interfered  with.  Offenses 
against  the  currency  include  counterfeiting  bank-notes 
and  coins  and  similar  abuses  of  the  currency.  A  most 
important  class  of  cases  arises  under  the  laws  for  the 
protection  of  the  postal  service.  Offenses  against  for- 
eign and  interstate  commerce,  against  the  slave  trade 
and  peonage,  and  even  the  old-fashioned  offense  of 
piracy  are  dealt  with  at  times  by  the  Department  of 
Justice. 


CHAPTER  IX 

FUNCTIONS  OF  THE  EXECUTIVE  DEPARTMENTS  "IN 
PROMOTING  THE  GENERAL  WELFARE" 

THE  DEPARTMENTS  OF  AGRICULTURE,  COMMERCE, 
AND  LABOR 

In  his  third  annual  address  to  Congress  on  October 
25,  1791,  Washington  said:  "The  completion  of  the 
census  of  the  inhabitants  for  which  provision  was  made 
by  law  has  been  duly  notified  (excepting  one  instance 
in  which  the  return  has  been  informal,  and  another  in 
which  it  has  been  omitted  or  miscarried),  and  the  re- 
turns of  the  officers  who  were  charged  with  this  duty, 
which  will  be  laid  before  you,  will  give  you  the  pleasing 
assurance  that  the  present  population  of  the  United 
States  borders  on  4,000,000  persons."  *  The  United 
States  to-day  has  about  101,208,315  inhabitants,  and 
the  problems  of  promoting  the  general  welfare  are  very 
different  from  what  they  were  in  the  days  of  Washing- 
ton's first  Administration.  The  Departments  of  Agri- 
culture, Commerce,  and  Labor  are  the  three  depart- 
ments most  nearly  concerned  with  the  general  welfare 
of  the  material  interests  of  the  nation,  and  we  will 
briefly  note  the  functions  of  these  departments. 

In  Switzerland  there  is  one  executive  department 
which  deals  with  commerce,  industry,  and  agriculture. 
1  Messages  and  Papers  of  the  Presidents,  vol.  I,  p.  106. 


AGRICULTURE,  COMMERCE,  LABOR   159 

In  France  and  in  the  United  States  there  are  three  sep- 
arate departments  dealing  in  a  general  way  with  these 
same  matters,  and  designated  the  Departments  of 
Agriculture,  Commerce,  and  Labor.  An  examination 
of  the  duties  assigned  to  these  various  departments, 
in  connection  with  those  of  the  Department  of  the  In- 
terior, forces  us  to  the  conclusion  that  the  distribution 
of  executive  functions  between  the  Departments  of  the 
Interior,  Agriculture,  Commerce,  and  Labor  in  the 
Federal  Government  is  not  very  logical.  The  work  of 
the  Weather  Bureau,  the  Bureau  of  Animal  Industry, 
of  Plant  Industry,  of  Chemistry,  of  Soils,  of  Entomol- 
ogy, of  Biological  Surveys,  of  Crop  Estimates,  of  Mar- 
kets and  Rural  Organization,  and  the  Office  of  Experi- 
ment Stations  are  all  part  of  the  functions  which  one 
would  properly  expect  to  be  under  the  supervision  of 
the  Department  of  Agriculture.  The  Forestry  Service 
and  the  Office  of  Public  Roads  are  also  in  the  Depart- 
ment of  Agriculture,  but  they  might  just  as  well  be  in 
the  Interior  Department,  or  perhaps  in  the  Post-Office 
Department.  Care  of  the  nation's  forests  would  seem 
to  belong  to  the  Department  of  the  Interior,  and  as  to 
public  roads,  the  Postmaster-General  is  claiming  more 
and  more  a  power  of  supervision.  Both  the  Office  of 
Public  Roads  and  the  Forest  Service,  however,  have  dis- 
tinct educational  aspects  which  might  very  properly 
place  them  under  the  Bureau  of  Education  in  the  In- 
terior Department.  In  the  Department  of  Commerce, 
which  we  shall  also  consider  in  this  chapter,  the  divi- 
sions are  of  two  sorts.   The  Bureaus  of  Foreign  and 


160  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

Domestic  Commerce,  of  Standards,  of  Fisheries,  of 
Lighthouses,  and  of  Navigation,  as  well  as  the  Coast 
and  Geodetic  Survey  and  Steamboat  Inspection  Serv- 
ice, all  relate  to  commerce.  The  Bureau  of  Corpora- 
tions, now  merged  in  the  Federal  Trade  Commission, 
dealt  with  a  different  class  of  matters  from  those  above 
enumerated;  but  corporations,  especially  in  reference 
to  interstate  commerce,  are  commercial,  and  there- 
fore the  Department  of  Commerce  was  as  appropriate 
a  place  for  the  Bureau  of  Corporations  as  any  other 
of  the  executive  departments.  The  Bureau  of  the  Cen- 
sus is  the  last  of  the  divisions  of  the  Department  of 
Commerce.  It  would  seem  that  the  census  might  more 
properly  have  remained  in  the  Interior  Department, 
since  it  concerns  the  personnel  of  the  citizens  of  the 
nation,  or  perhaps  have  been  placed  in  the  Department 
of  Labor,  whose  Bureaus  of  Immigration  and  Natural- 
ization also  deal  with  the  personnel  of  the  United 
States.  The  "General  Welfare"  departments  are  thoso 
of  Agriculture  and  of  Commerce,  and  the  Department 
of  Labor,  which  last,  in  addition  to  immigration  and 
naturalization,  deals  with  labor  statistics  as  to  children, 
both  of  which  subjects  are  closely  allied  to  the  census. 
From  this  summary  of  the  functions  of  the  Depart- 
ments of  Agriculture,  of  Commerce,  and  of  Labor,  we 
can  see  that  each  of  these  departments  deals  primarily 
with  the  matters  denoted  by  its  name,  that  the  func- 
tions of  each,  in  many  instances,  refer  to  the  same  class 
of  matters,  and  that  there  is  no  very  strict  rule  of  clas- 
sification underlying  the  distribution  of  their  functions. 


AGRICULTURE,  COMMERCE,  LABOR   161 

In  his  first  report  to  the  President,  in  1849,  Thomas 
Ewing,  Secretary  of  the  Interior,  recommended  the 
organization  of  a  Bureau  of  Agriculture.  From  1839 
there  had  existed  an  Agricultural  Division  in  the  Patent 
Office,  and  appropriations  had  been  made  for  the  col- 
lection of  agricultural  statistics  including  the  purchase 
of  seeds,  which  remains  to-day  as  one  of  the  best- 
known  functions  of  the  Department  of  Agriculture  to 
the  general  mass  of  American  citizens.  We  have  already 
noted  that  the  agricultural  interests  of  the  Government 
were  for  a  time  one  of  the  miscellaneous  cares  of  the 
Secretary  of  the  Interior.  By  the  Act  of  May  16,  1862, x 
however,  the  Department  of  Agriculture  was  estab- 
lished as  an  independent  bureau  or  office.  It  was  not, 
however,  at  that  time,  one  of  the  great  executive  de- 
partments presided  over  by  a  member  of  the  Cabinet, 
but  in  1889  it  was  raised  to  the  rank  of  an  executive 
department  and  its  chief  official  became  a  member  of 
the  President's  Cabinet  as  Secretary  of  Agriculture. 
It  is  a  curious  coincidence  that  in  the  same  year,  1889, 
a  new  Department  of  State  having  similar  duties  was 
created  in  the  English  Government.  The  Board  of 
Agriculture,  to  which  I  have  referred  as  one  of  the  five 
principal  boards  in  the  executive  department  of  the 
English  Government,  was  created  to  attend  to  matters 
that  were  transferred  to  it  from  various  commercial 
and  other  bodies  connected  with  the  English  Govern- 
ment. The  Board  of  Agriculture  in  England  has  to  do 
with  various  matters  relating  to  the  ancient  land  ten- 
1  12  U.S.  Stat.  L.  337. 


162  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

ures  and  allotments  to  laborers.  "The  control  of  fish- 
eries, the  promotion  of  agriculture,  and  the  prevention 
of  contagious  diseases  among  animals  are  also  placed 
under  its  care,"  writes  Mr.  Lowell,  "and  it  has  been 
given  power  or  rather  authority  to  muzzle  dogs  and 
destroy  the  Colorado  beetle."  x  Fisheries,  with  us,  are 
under  the  supervision  of  the  Department  of  Commerce, 
but  the  promotion  of  agriculture  and  the  prevention 
of  contagious  diseases  among  animals  are  among  the 
principal  functions  of  the  Department  of  Agriculture. 

There  are  twelve  principal  subdivisions  of  the  De- 
partment of  Agriculture,  all  of  which  are  under  the 
general  supervision  of  the  Secretary.  All  these  twelve 
subdivisions  relate,  more  or  less,  to  agriculture,  but,  as 
I  have  pointed  out,  the  Forest  Service  and  the  Office 
of  Public  Roads  concern  also  other  departments  of 
the  Government.  There  is  no  question,  however,  that 
both  the  Forest  Service  and  the  Office  of  Public  Roads 
exercise  very  important  duties  in  reference  to  the  gen- 
eral welfare  of  the  nation.  We  will  note  the  duties  of 
these  last  two  divisions,  however,  before  examining  the 
more  purely  agricultural  divisions  of  the  department. 

The  Forest  Service  has  entire  charge  of  the  National 
Forests  of  the  United  States,  which  are  in  themselves  a 
great  asset  and  a  very  important  resource  of  the  nation, 
not  only  for  material  products,  but  in  relation  to  cli- 
matic conditions.  The  Forest  Service  was  instituted 
for  the  purpose  of  studying  forest  conditions  and 
methods  of  forest  utilization.  It  investigates  the  vari- 
1  The  Government  of  England,  vol.  I,  p.  111. 


AGRICULTURE,  COMMERCE,  LABOR   163 

pus  properties  of  different  kinds  of  woods  and  studies 
the  methods  of  manufacturing  and  making  salable  the 
products  of  the  forest.  At  the  close  of  the  year  1914, 
exclusive  of  land  not  the  property  of  the  Government, 
the  area  in  forests  was  slightly  over  165,000,000  acres. 
The  National  Forests  have  an  immense  property  value, 
and  there  are,  in  addition,  privately  owned  forests,  the 
value  of  whose  annual  production  reaches  an  enormous 
sum.  On  the  continent  of  Europe,  especially  in  Ger- 
many, one  finds  forests,  planted  and  tended  with  the 
same  care  as  a  potato  patch,  which  produce  large  an- 
nual revenues.  Lumbering  in  the  United  States  in  the 
past  has  involved  enormous  waste,  and  even  at  the 
present  time  little  of  the  private  timber  is  handled  in 
such  a  way  as  to  protect  a  future  crop.  One  of  the  duties 
of  the  Bureau  of  Animal  Industry  is  to  improve  the 
meat  supply  of  the  country.  The  public  grazing  lands 
in  the  United  States,  part  of  which  are  in  the  National 
Forests,  embrace  about  300,000,000  acres.  The  Forest 
Service  has  inaugurated  a  system  by  which  annual 
grazing  permits  are  required  before  the  grazing  lands 
in  the  National  Forests  can  be  used,  and  with  the  very 
low  grazing  fees  now  charged,  the  Government  receives 
over  a  million  dollars  a  year  from  this  source  of  reve- 
nue alone.  While  the  chief  task  of  the  Department  of 
Agriculture  in  reference  to  forestry  relates  to  the  ad- 
ministration of  the  National  Forests,  the  Forest  Serv- 
ice devotes  itself  in  every  way  to  the  improvement  of 
timber  and  forest  conditions  throughout  the  nation. 
-   In  the  same  manner  as  the  Forest  Service  studies 


164     THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

everything  relating  to  the  general  welfare  of  forestry- 
interests  in  the  United  States,  so  the  Office  of  Public 
Roads  studies  systems  of  road-management  and  meth- 
ods of  road-building.  It  details  engineers  to  various 
parts  of  the  country  to  assist  the  officials  of  States, 
or  counties,  or  townships  in  building  model  roads,  and 
it  builds  in  various  parts  of  the  country  experimental 
roads  in  order  to  test  the  value  of  various  road-building 
materials.  I  have  already  pointed  out  that  it  conducts 
a  one-year  post-graduate  course  in  highway  engineering 
and  it  also  investigates  one  of  the  most  important  ques- 
tions which  to-day  confront  road-builders,  that  of  the 
comparative  effect  of  motors  and  horse  traffic  on  roads. 
Rural  transportation  is  at  the  present  time  in  the  pro- 
cess of  revolution.  Mechanically  driven  vehicles  are 
rapidly  taking  the  place  of  wagons  drawn  by  horse  or 
mule  power.  In  the  red-clay  districts  of  the  Carolinas 
and  Georgia,  the  "horseless  carriage,"  as  the  mule 
team  is  sometimes  called,  is  a  necessity  because  of 
the  heavy  roads  which  make  motor  vehicles  impossible; 
but  all  through  the  country  are  rapidly  being  built 
improved  roads  of  a  modern  type,  and  the  motor-driven 
vehicle,  which  is  yearly  becoming  less  expensive,  is 
gradually  becoming  the  prevailing  means  of  transpor- 
tation in  the  rural  communities.  The  road,  however, 
which  is  best  suited  to  motor-driven  vehicles  is  danger- 
ous and  never  well  suited  to  horses  or  other  animals, 
and  the  Office  of  Public  Roads  cooperates  with  state 
highway  officials  in  showing  model  types  of  roads,  cul- 
verts, bridges,  and  road  machines  which  can  best  pro- 


AGRICULTURE,  COMMERCE,  LABOR   165 

mote  rural  transportation.  The  office  also  cooperates 
with  the  Post-Office  Department  in  carrying  out  the 
duties  of  that  department  relating  to  the  improvement 
of  post-roads.  There  is  a  director  of  public  roads,  to- 
gether with  various  officials  in  charge  of  construction, 
road  economics,  roads  in  National  Parks,  and  forests 
and  other  matters  relating  to  the  office. 

From  the  point  of  view  of  this  book  the  main  work 
of  the  Department  of  Agriculture  may  be  very  briefly 
summarized.  Beside  the  Forest  Service  and  the  Office 
of  Public  Roads,  there  are  ten  bureaus  or  offices  which 
deal  with  essentially  agricultural  matters.  The  state  of 
the  weather  is  important  to  everybody  for  all  purposes, 
but  it  is  especially  important  to  the  agriculturist.  The 
Weather  Bureau  attempts  to  forecast  the  weather  and 
it  issues  warnings  as  to  floods  and  frosts  and  cold  waves 
and  storms.  It  also  keeps  a  watchful  eye  over  the 
weather  for  the  benefit  of  commerce  and  navigation, 
and  through  its  telegraph  and  telephone  lines  gives  ad- 
vice to  mariners.  It  can  hardly  be  said  that  the  Weather 
Bureau  performs  functions  which  belong  exclusively 
to  agriculture,  since  the  matters  with  which  it  deals 
relate  so  much  to  the  general  life  of  the  people  of  the 
country.  The  Department  of  Justice  frequently  finds 
it  necessary  to  call  upon  the  Weather  Bureau  for  its 
records  of  the  weather  on  certain  occasions  in  reference 
to  pending  litigation,  and  the  work  that  the  bureau 
does  and  the  instruments  it  uses  in  taking  meteorolog- 
ical and  other  observations  in  reference  to  the  weather 
and  the  climate  are  of  a  most  intricate  nature. 


166  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

The  Bureau  of  Animal  Industry  and  that  of  Plant 
Industry  indicate  the  sort  of  duties  they  perform  by 
their  names.  The  Bureau  of  Animal  Industry  fre- 
quently comes  prominently  before  the  notice  of  the 
public  through  the  newspapers  in  matters  relating  to 
the  diseases  of  animals  and  the  inspection  and  quaran- 
tine of  live  stock  suffering  from  such  diseases.  The 
shipment  of  spoiled  or  diseased  meat  is  prohibited  by 
the  laws  of  the  United  States,  and  the  inspection  of  meat 
and  the  food  products  from  meat  come  under  the  juris- 
diction of  this  bureau.  The  Bureau  of  Plant  Industry 
is  rather  more  of  a  scientific  bureau.  Its  work  is  di- 
vided into  twenty-nine  groups,  over  each  of  which  is 
placed  a  technically  trained  officer  who  studies  plant 
life  in  all  of  its  various  forms  in  its  relations  to  agricul- 
ture, and  the  Government  is  doing  a  most  important 
work  for  the  agricultural  interests  of  the  country  in  the 
studying  of  methods  of  exterminating  the  numerous 
enemies  of  plants,  in  devising  better  fertilizers,  and  in 
other  ways  assisting  to  improve  the  varied  matters  with 
which  agriculture  in  so  large  a  country  as  ours  of 
necessity  deals.  Tobacco,  cotton,  fruit  diseases,  corn 
investigations,  and  all  sorts  of  matters  of  a  similar  na- 
ture are  among  the  duties  of  this  bureau. 

The  Bureau  of  Chemistry,  the  Bureau  of  Soils,  and 
the  Bureau  of  Entomology  all  in  a  like  manner  conduct 
studies  and  experiments  for  the  benefit  of  agricultural 
interests.  A  great  many  cases  under  the  jurisdiction 
of  the  Department  of  Justice  arise  from  violations  of 
the  Food  and  Drug  Acts,  by  which  the  people  of  the 


AGRICULTURE,  COMMERCE,  LABOR   167 

United  States  are  protected  from  poisonous  or  fraud- 
ulent foods  or  drugs,  and  the  Bureau  of  Chemistry  is 
chiefly  concerned  with  the  analytical  work  and  inves- 
tigations necessary  in  connection  with  the  enforcement 
of  these  laws.  In  the  same  way,  the  Bureau  of  Biologi- 
cal Survey  has  to  do  with  carrying  into  effect  the  fed- 
eral laws  protecting  game,  and  in  recent  years  the 
Federal  Government  has  assumed  the  protection  of 
the  game  of  the  country  in  certain  particulars. 

There  is  also  in  this  department  the  Bureau  of  Crop 
Estimates  and  the  Office  of  Experiment  Stations,  which 
latter  manages  experiment  stations  in  Alaska,  Hawaii, 
Porto  Rico,  Guam,  and  throughout  the  various  parts 
of  the  United  States  themselves.  There  is  also  the 
Office  of  Markets  and  Rural  Organization  which  makes 
a  special  study  of  methods  of  packing  and  shipping 
agricultural  products  and  the  commercial  side  of  agri- 
culture. It  also  conducts  investigations  as  to  methods 
of  rural  credits  and  insurance,  and  even  takes  up  social 
and  educational  activities  in  rural  communities. 

Unless  one  should  desire  to  go  very  deeply  into  the 
methods  of  the  Department  of  Agriculture  as  to  the 
work  of  its  various  bureaus,  it  is  only  necessary  to  say 
that  the  department,  in  a  most  efficient  and  thor- 
oughly up-to-date  manner,  investigates,  experiments, 
and  publishes  every  sort  of  thing  that  is  of  interest  to 
agriculture  in  its  broadest  sense.  If  the  San  Jose  scale 
attacks  your  fruit  trees,  you  may  write  to  the  Depart- 
ment of  Agriculture.  If  your  neighbor  has  in  an  ad- 
joining pasture  to  yours  a  tuberculous  cow,  you  may 


168  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

secure  protection  by  advising  the  Department  of  Agri- 
culture. If  you  desire  to  raise  a  special  sort  of  turnip, 
again  you  may  advise  the  Department  of  Agriculture. 
If  it  has  not  the  seed  for  such  a  turnip  as  you  wish,  its 
experts  will  attempt  to  secure  for  you  the  sort  of  tur- 
nip you  desire.  The  way  in  which  the  Department  of 
Agriculture  comes  most  closely  in  touch,  however,  with 
the  non-farming  element  of  the  nation  is  that  it  yearly 
issues  millions  of  bushels  of  seeds.  A  certain  number  of 
these  seeds  are  allotted  to  each  Congressman,  and  very 
many  Congressmen  annually  flood  their  districts  with 
seeds  which  they  hope  will  bear  a  speedy  fruit  in  the 
shape  of  votes  at  the  next  congressional  election. 

The  fact  that  the  thing  most  generally  known  in  refer- 
ence to  the  Department  of  Agriculture  is  the  free  dis- 
tribution of  seeds  is  a  striking  illustration  of  the  pre- 
vailing ignorance  of  our  people  as  to  the  enormous 
resources  of  the  United  States  and  the  importance  of 
the  functions  of  the  Department  of  Agriculture.  There 
are  about  6,000,000  farming  families  in  the  United 
States,  and  it  is  primarily  their  business  to  feed  the  rest 
of  the  country.  What  the  United  States  eats  and  what 
it  produces  for  others  to  eat  every  year  is  amazing. 
The  annual  production  of  the  dairies  in  butter,  milk, 
and  cheese  has  a  value  of  approximately  $600,000,000. 
The  fruit  orchards  of  the  United  States  annually  yield 
more  than  $140,000,000,  while  the  value  of  the  annual 
production  of  vegetables  alone  is  in  excess  of  $400,- 
000,000.  In  these  days  of  automobiles,  unless  one  hap- 
pens to  keep  a  horse,  hay  and  forage  do  not  seem  to 


AGRICULTURE,  COMMERCE,  LABOR   169 

be  very  important  matters,  but  the  annual  production 
of  the  United  States  of  these  two  agricultural  products 
exceeds  in  value  $800,000,000.  The  annual  value  of  the 
poultry  products  alone  aggregates  half  a  billion  dollars, 
which  is  about  one  half  of  the  value  of  the  annual  cot- 
ton production.1  While  there  has  been  in  the  past 
years  an  enormous  increase  in  such  products  as  wheat, 
fruits,  dairy  products,  and  poultry,  there  has  been  an 
absolute  decrease  in  the  annual  production  of  such 
important  food  products  as  corn  and  meats,  and  the 
Department  of  Agriculture,  in  every  possible  way,  is 
attempting  to  point  out  to  the  farmers  of  the  United 
States  the  profits  to  be  derived  from  increasing  pro- 
duction in  such  matters  and  better  methods  of  farm 
economics  and  placing  their  goods  in  the  markets. 
The  more  one  studies  the  far-reaching  and  important 
functions  of  the  Department  of  Agriculture,  the  more 
one  realizes  the  enormous  value  to  the  nation  of  the 
functions  it  performs.  When  we  remember  that  in 
1913  more  than  $60,000,000  worth  of  hogs  were  de- 
stroyed by  hog  cholera,  and  that  the  cattle  tick  causes 
an  annual  loss  from  $40,000,000  to  $100,000,000,  we 
can  grasp  the  enormous  economic  advantages  of  the 
endeavors  of  the  Bureau  of  Animal  Industry;  but  these 
are  only  part  of  the  important  functions  of  the  depart- 
ment. The  people  of  this  nation  are  spending  annually 
about  $200,000,000  for  roads  and  the  department  is 
rendering  most  valuable  assistance  in  the  educational 
and  construction  work  connected  with  these  roads.  The 
1  Report  of  the  Secretary  of  Agriculture  for  191U,  pp.  6  and  12. 


170  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

subject  of  rural  credits  is  a  most  important  one  to 
the  agricultural  interests  and  therefore  to  the  whole 
people. 

The  American  farmers  are,  as  a  class,  said  to  be 
more  prosperous  than  any  other  farming  class  in  the 
world,  but  the  methods  which  have  been  applied  to  the 
great  industries  of  the  country  are  only  now  beginning 
to  be  applied  to  the  rural  life  of  the  nation.  The  De- 
partment of  Agriculture,  through  the  Office  of  Markets 
and  Rural  Organization,  and  the  Office  of  Farm  Man- 
agement, is  doing  a  most  important  work  in  assisting 
the  agricultural  interests  of  the  country  to  place  them- 
selves upon  the  highly  organized  and  remunerative 
basis  upon  which  our  manufacturing  industries  have 
been  for  so  long  a  time. 

The  rapid  growth  of  the  department  since  its  organ- 
ization has  been  phenomenal.  In  1914,  Congress  au- 
thorized the  Secretary  to  prepare  a  plan  for  reorgan- 
izing, redirecting,  and  systematizing  the  work  of  the 
department,  and  in  his  last  report  to  the  President,  the 
Secretary  of  Agriculture  made  certain  important  rec- 
ommendations along  these  lines.  In  recent  years  the 
problem  of  the  congestion  of  cities  and  the  desertion  of 
rural  communities  has  been  presented  to  the  American 
people  in  many  forms  In  the  last  fifteen  years,  the 
population  has  increased  by  23,000,000,  of  which  only 
about  6,000,000  appear  as  an  increase  in  the  strictly 
rural  districts.  The  Department  of  Agriculture  is  using 
every  possible  effort  for  the  improvement  of  rural  life 
in  all  of  its  aspects,  and  is  thus  doing  not  only  ex- 


AGRICULTURE,  COMMERCE,  LABOR   171 

tremely  important  work  for  the  general  welfare  of  the 
nation,  but  work  absolutely  necessary  to  its  integrity. 

The  two  most  recent  executive  departments  of  the 
Federal  Government  are  the  Department  of  Commerce 
and  the  Department  of  Labor.  The  Department  of 
Commerce  and  Labor  was  created  by  Act  of  Congress 
in  1903,  and  the  Department  of  Labor  was  carved 
from  it  in  1913.  The  Department  of  Commerce  and 
Labor,  before  the  Department  of  Labor  was  created, 
had  in  it  the  following  bureaus:  Corporations,  Manu- 
factures, Labor,  Lighthouses,  Census,  Statistics,  Fish- 
eries, Navigation,  Immigration  and  Naturalization, 
and  Standards.  It  also  had  charge  of  the  Coast  and 
Geodetic  Survey  and  Steamboat  Inspection  Service. 
Of  the  above-named  bureaus,  those  of  the  Census, 
Lighthouses,  Fisheries,  Navigation,  and  Standards 
are  all  in  the  present  Department  of  Commerce,  as  are 
also  the  Coast  and  Geodetic  Survey  and  the  Steamboat 
Inspection  Service.  There  is  no  longer  a  Bureau  of 
Manufactures,  but  in  the  Department  of  Commerce  is 
a  Bureau  of  Foreign  and  Domestic  Commerce,  which 
performs  the  duties  which  were  formerly  in  the  prov- 
ince of  the  Bureau  of  Manufactures  with  certain  other 
duties  which  have  been  since  added.  Of  the  remaining 
bureaus  of  the  old  Department  of  Commerce  and 
Labor,  the  old  Bureau  of  Immigration  and  Naturaliza- 
tion now  exists  in  the  Department  of  Labor  as  the  inde- 
pendent Bureaus  of  Immigration  and  of  Naturaliza- 
tion and  the  old  Bureau  of  Labor  and  the  Bureau  of 


172  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

Statistics  are  merged  into  the  present  Bureau  of  Labor 
Statistics  in  the  Department  of  Labor.  There  is  a  fourth 
bureau  in  that  department  called  the  Children's  Bureau, 
and  this  one  bureau  is  really  the  only  division  belong- 
ing to  the  two  existing  departments  in  addition  to 
the  divisions  of  the  old  Department  of  Commerce  and 
Labor. 

The  Secretary  of  Commerce  at  the  close  of  the  year 
1914  supervised  the  Bureau  of  the  Census,  with  its 
highly  technical  organization,  and  the  Bureau  of  Cor- 
porations which  was  almost  an  independent  division 
of  the  Administration.  This  latter  bureau,  by  the  Act 
of  Congress  of  September  26,  1914,  providing  for  a 
Federal  Trade  Commission,  was  merged  into  this 
commission  immediately  upon  its  organization,  the 
above  act  providing  that  the  Bureau  of  Corporations 
should  then  cease  to  exist  and  that  all  of  its  functions 
should  be  exercised  by  the  Federal  Trade  Commission. 
We  will  consider  the  work  of  the  Bureau  of  Corpora- 
tions when  we  examine  the  Federal  Trade  Commis- 
sion. The  remaining  divisions  of  the  department  pri- 
marily concern  commerce.  The  Coast  and  Geodetic 
Survey  and  the  Steamboat  Inspection  Service  are  both 
important  divisions.  The  Bureaus  of  Foreign  and  Do- 
mestic Commerce,  of  Navigation,  and  of  Lighthouses 
relate  specifically  to  commerce,  while  the  Bureaus  of 
Standards  and  of  Fisheries  relate  less  directly  to  the 
same  subject.  We  will  consider  the  census  before  tak- 
ing up  the  divisions  which  relate  primarily  to  the  com- 
mercial functions  of  the  department. 


AGRICULTURE,  COMMERCE,  LABOR  173 

The  Bureau  of  the  Census  formerly  occupied  a  sep- 
arate building  from  that  occupied  by  the  majority  of 
the  other  bureaus  of  the  department.  It  is  now  located 
in  the  main  building  of  the  department,  and  it  is  the 
urgent  recommendation  of  the  Secretary  of  Commerce 
that  a  suitable  building  be  erected  as  soon  as  possible 
to  accommodate  all  the  divisions  of  the  department. 
Such  a  movement  is  entirely  in  accord  with  the  proper 
coordination  of  the  work  of  the  department,  which,  at 
the  present  time,  is  hampered  by  the  scattered  and  semi- 
independent  condition  of  many  of  its  bureaus.  Libra- 
ries were  formerly  maintained  by  each  of  the  separate 
bureaus,  but  as  a  step  toward  the  proper  consolidation 
of  the  department,  the  library  of  the  Bureau  of  the 
Census  has  recently  been  incorporated  with  the  libra- 
ries of  the  other  bureaus  and  the  department  now  pos- 
sesses one  general  library.  The  necessity  for  a  proper 
census  was  recognized  at  the  beginning  of  the  Federal 
Government,  and  in  Washington's  first  Administration 
a  census  was  made.  The  Bureau  of  the  Census  collects 
and  digests  information,  not  only  as  to  the  number  and 
character  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  nation,  but  conducts 
highly  scientific  researches  into  all  manner  of  questions 
relating  to  their  general  interests.  From  time  to  time  it 
publishes  bulletins  upon  such  subjects  as  "National 
and  State  Indebtedness  and  Funds  and  Investments," 
"Taxation  and  Revenue  Systems  of  State  and  Local 
Governments,"  "National  and  State  Revenues  and 
Expenditures,"  "County  and  Municipal  Indebted- 
ness," "Central  Electric  Light  and  Power  Stations  and 


174  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

Street  and  Electric  Railroads,"  "Telephones  and  Tele- 
graphs." It  also  prepares  statistics  in  reference  to 
occupations,  agriculture,  and  various  other  national 
interests.  Early  in  August,  1914,  the  bureau  began  the 
preparation  of  a  special  report  relating  to  negroes  in 
the  United  States,  and  it  has  recently  issued  a  report 
on  Indians,  together  with  bulletins  on  the  Chinese  and 
Japanese.  Under  authority  of  an  Act  of  Congress  of 
April  30,  1912,  the  Bureau  makes  semiannual  collec- 
tions and  publications  of  statistics  as  to  tobacco,  and 
it  performs  the  same  functions  in  reference  to  cotton 
and  other  staple  products.  In  other  words,  the  Bureau 
of  the  Census  is  the  department  of  the  Federal  Execu- 
tive for  obtaining  information  on  all  subjects  of  interest 
to  the  general  welfare  of  the  nation  and  of  putting  this 
information  into  such  form  as  will  give  it  the  greatest 
amount  of  practical  value. 

The  Bureau  of  Foreign  and  Domestic  Commerce  is 
charged  with  fostering  the  more  strictly  commercial 
interests  of  American  merchants  and  manufacturers 
and  its  duties  bring  it  in  close  touch  with  the  State 
Department.  The  work  abroad  performed  by  the  de- 
partment through  this  bureau  is  through  the  consular 
service  and  through  commercial  attaches  and  through 
commercial  agents.  The  commercial  agent  is  the  "  trav- 
eling man"  of  the  department.  He  is  charged  with 
the  investigation  of  a  single  matter  or  a  group  of  allied 
interests,  and  in  his  study  of  them  visits  the  various 
markets  of  the  world  and  reports  to  the  department 
upon  opportunities  there  existing  for  American  goods. 


AGRICULTURE,  COMMERCE,  LABOR   175 

The  force  of  commercial  attaches  works  in  conjunction 
with  the  permanent  consular  service  for  the  promotion 
of  American  commerce.  In  order  to  perform  its  duties 
most  beneficially  to  the  business  interests  of  the  coun- 
try, a  branch  office  of  the  bureau  was  opened  in  New 
York,  and  the  success  of  that  office  led  to  the  institu- 
tion of  similar  offices  in  Chicago,  San  Francisco,  New 
Orleans,  Boston,  Atlanta,  Seattle,  and  St.  Louis,  and 
new  branch  offices  are  being  from  time  to  time  estab- 
lished. A  special  fund  has  been  appropriated  for  pro- 
moting commerce  in  Central  and  South  America,  and 
by  these  various  means  the  bureau  works  for  the  ex- 
tension of  American  commerce. 

The  Secretary  of  Commerce,  Mr.  Redfield,  in  his 
Report  for  1914, l  very  aptly  says,  "Practically  every 
industry  has  its  units,  its  special  methods  of  measure- 
ment, and  measuring  instruments  designed  for  every 
kind  of  need."  Ancient  laws  of  England  still  exist  for 
the  protection  of  the  public  from  false  weights  and 
measures,  and  the  false  bottom  in  the  peck  measure 
to-day,  as  of  yore,  is  still  a  source  of  apprehension  to 
the  housewife.  The  primary  function  of  the  Bureau 
of  Standards  is  the  stimulation  of  interest  in  honest 
weights  and  measures  in  daily  trade,  but  the  bureau 
performs  much  wider  and  more  important  functions. 
In  all  industries  standardization  has  been  and  is  one  of 
the  most  important  aims  in  modern  efficiency.  There  is 
a  federal  law  requiring  the  quantity  label  on  package 
goods,  which  is  enforced  by  the  Treasury  and  Agri- 
1  Page  55. 


176  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

cultural  Departments,  and  in  the  carrying-out  of  this 
law  the  bureau  cooperates,  but  it  also  performs  highly 
important  and  scientific  functions  in  such  matters  as 
the  devising  of  standards  for  length,  mass,  capacity, 
heat,  light,  and  electricity.  It  has  evolved  a  system  of 
measuring  certain  wave-lengths  of  light  with  the  high- 
est possible  precision,  and  its  testing  laboratory  per- 
formed about  one  hundred  thousand  tests  in  the  past 
year  for  the  Government  Departments  alone.  Its  work, 
however,  is  not  confined  to  Federal  Government  needs. 
States  and  cities,  public-service  corporations  and  com- 
missions, industrial  laboratories  and  plants,  commer- 
cial houses  engaged  in  foreign  trade,  consulting  engi- 
neers, educational  institutions,  and  the  general  public 
all  avail  themselves  of  the  agencies  offered  to  the  nation 
by  the  bureau. 

In  1913  the  fishing  industry  of  Alaska  gave  employ- 
ment to  more  than  21,700  persons,  including  over  4000 
natives.  The  investment  in  fishing  property  exceeded 
$37,000,000,  of  which  $34,953,000  represented  the  sal- 
mon industry.  The  catch  of  salmon  aggregated  59,- 
915,000  fish,  from  which  there  were  prepared  3,739,000 
cases  of  canned  fish  valued  at  $13,531,000,  and  mis- 
cellaneous products  valued  at  $917,600.  This  is  only  a 
portion  of  the  vast  fishing  industries  of  the  United 
States,  the  income  from  which  annually  amounts  to 
millions  of  dollars.  All  matters  relating  to  these  enor- 
mous sources  of  national  wealth  are  under  the  direc- 
tion and  fostering  care  of  the  Bureau  of  Fisheries.  Its 
fish-cultural  activities  are    conducted   in   thirty-four 


AGRICULTURE,  COMMERCE,  LABOR    177 

States,  the  Territory  of  Alaska,  and  the  District  of 
Columbia,  at  thirty-six  permanent  hatcheries  and 
ninety-four  auxiliary  and  egg-collecting  stations,  and 
its  marine  laboratories  at  Woods  Hole,  Massachusetts, 
and  Beaufort,  North  Carolina,  and  the  fresh-water 
laboratory  on  the  Mississippi  River  at  Fairport,  Iowa, 
have  been  actively  utilized  for  investigations,  re- 
searches, and  experiments  of  either  immediate  or  pro- 
spective value  to  the  fishing  industries.  The  Alaskan 
fur-seal  industry  is  also  under  its  direct  supervision. 
The  enemies  of  the  oyster  and  the  destroyers  of  the  seal 
alike  receive  the  watchful  care  of  this  important  bu- 
reau, which  protects  a  very  important  source  of  food 
and  revenue  of  the  whole  nation. 

The  Bureau  of  Lighthouses,  the  Coast  and  Geodetic 
Survey,  the  Bureau  of  Navigation,  and  the  Steamboat 
Inspection  Service  are  the  remaining  divisions  of  the 
department.  On  June  30,  1914,  there  were  5542  per- 
sons employed  in  the  Lighthouse  Service.  The  Coast 
and  Geodetic  Survey  is  the  greatest  service  of  its  kind 
in  the  world.  There  are  several  times  as  many  miles  of 
coast  in  Alaska  alone  as  in  the  entire  United  Kingdom 
of  Great  Britain  and  Ireland.  The  surveying  and  chart- 
ing of  the  Philippines  is  by  itself  a  far  greater  task  than 
is  imposed  upon  France  on  all  her  own  marine  borders 
in  Europe.  The  surveying  of  the  Hawaiian  Islands,  of 
Samoa,  Guam,  and  Porto  Rico  is  a  greater  task  than 
is  that  of  like  work  upon  the  European  coast  of  Ger- 
many. During  the  fiscal  year  ending  June  30,  1914, 
318,094,347  passengers  were  transported  on  those  ves- 


178  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

sels  which  are  required  by  law  to  report  the  number 
of  passengers  carried.  The  total  number  of  accidents 
which  resulted  in  the  loss  of  life  during  this  period  was 
232,  and  the  number  of  lives  lost  was  582,  including 
passengers  and  crew.  The  total  documented  merchant 
shipping  of  the  United  States  on  June  30,  1914,  com- 
prised 26,943  vessels  of  7,928,688  gross  tons,  and  the 
receipts  from  tonnage  duties  were  $1,310,759.03.  Over 
all  these  commercial  matters  the  department  exercises 
more  or  less  direction  and  supervision  through  the 
above-named  bureaus.  It  is  their  duty  to  see  that  the 
navigation  laws  are  enforced,  that  the  dangers  of  the 
coast  are  known  to  the  mariner,  and  that  those  who 
go  down  to  the  sea  in  ships  may  do  so  with  the  greatest 
possible  safety.  The  United  States  is  one  of  the  three 
leading  commercial  nations,  and  it  is  not  surprising  to 
find  that  the  cost  of  maintaining  its  Department  of 
Commerce  for  the  year  ending  June  30, 1914,  amounted 
to  about  $11,500,000. 

A  study  of  the  functions  of  the  Departments  of  Agri- 
culture and  of  Commerce  will  do  more  than  any  other 
one  thing  to  convince  the  citizens  of  this  nation  that 
the  federal  service  requires  the  highest  possible  techni- 
cal and  scientific  training  for  the  proper  performance 
of  the  vital  matters  relating  to  the  general  welfare  con- 
ducted through  these  two  great  departments. 

The  Department  of  Labor  is  the  third  of  the  depart- 
ments which  we  are  considering  in  this  chapter.  As  I 
have  already  pointed  out,  this  department  is  another 
of  the  offshoots  of  the  old  Department  of  the  Interior. 


AGRICULTURE,  COMMERCE,  LABOR    179 

By  the  Act  of  June  27,  1884, x  a  Bureau  of  Labor  was 
established  in  the  Department  of  the  Interior  and  its 
commissioner  was  required  to  collect  information  upon 
the  subject  of  labor,  its  relation  to  capital,  the  hours  of 
labor,  and  the  earnings  of  laboring  men  and  women, 
and  their  material,  social,  intellectual,  and  moral  pros- 
perity. We  have  already  noted  the  transfer  of  this  bu- 
reau to  the  old  Department  of  Commerce  and  Labor, 
and  have  discussed  the  severance  of  the  present  divi- 
sions of  the  Department  of  Labor  when  that  depart- 
ment was  created  in  1913.  Its  four  chief  divisions  are 
the  Bureaus  of  Immigration,  of  Naturalization,  of  Labor 
Statistics,  and  the  Children's  Bureau.  While  the  work 
of  all  of  these  bureaus  relates  in  a  general  way  to  labor, 
it  also  relates  more  specifically  to  the  personnel  of  the 
inhabitants  and  citizens  of  the  United  States,  and  logi- 
cally these  bureaus  might  just  as  well  be  in  the  De- 
partment of  the  Interior  or  of  Commerce.  These  de- 
partments, however,  are  already  overburdened,  and  the 
creation  of  the  Department  of  Labor  is  the  most  re- 
cent illustration  of  the  natural  expansion  of  the  Federal 
Government.  The  policy  of  the  department  is  expressed 
by  Secretary  Wilson.  In  his  Report  for  the  year  ending 
June  30,  1914,  the  second  annual  report  for  the  depart- 
ment, he  says:  "It  was  created  in  the  interest  of  the 
welfare  of  all  the  wage-earners  of  the  United  States, 
whether  organized  or  unorganized.  Inasmuch,  how- 
ever, as  it  is  ordinarily  only  through  organization  that 
the  many  in  any  class  or  of  any  interest  can  become 
1  23  U.S.  Stat.  L.  60. 


180  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

articulate  with  reference  to  their  common  needs  and 
aspirations,  the  Department  of  Labor  is  usually  under 
a  necessity  of  turning  to  the  labor  organizations  that 
exist  and  such  as  may  come  into  existence  for  definite 
and  trustworthy  advice  on  the  sentiments  of  the  wage- 
earning  classes  regarding  their  common  welfare.  Freely 
as  conferences  with  unorganized  wage-earners  are  wel- 
come, official  intercourse  with  individuals  as  such  has 
practical  limits  which  organization  alone  can  remove. 
Manifestly,  then,  the  Department  of  Labor  must  in- 
vite the  confidence  and  encourage  the  cooperation  of 
responsible  labor  organizations  and  their  accredited 
officers  and  committees  if  it  is  to  subserve  its  pre- 
scribed purpose  through  an  intelligent  and  effective 
administration  of  its  authorized  functions."  l  The 
Secretary,  under  the  organic  law  of  the  department, 
has  power  to  act  as  mediator  and  to  appoint  commis- 
sioners of  conciliation  in  labor  disputes  whenever  in 
his  judgment  the  interests  of  industrial  peace  may  re- 
quire it  to  be  done.  It  is  this  power,  rather  than  the 
routine  work  of  the  department  bureaus,  that  gives 
reason  for  the  creation  of  the  department  as  a  separate 
branch  of  the  Federal  Executive,  and  we  shall  later 
note  that  similar  reasoning  underlies  the  claim  that 
there  should  be  created  a  Department  of  Transportation, 
as  an  added  arm  of  the  President. 

The  Bureau  of  Immigration  has  charge  of  the  ad- 
ministration of  all  immigration  and  Chinese  exclusion 
laws.   In  the  archives  of  the  Bureau  of  Naturalization 
1  Report  for  191  It,  p.  5. 


AGRICULTURE,  COMMERCE,  LABOR    181 

are  filed  duplicates  of  all  certificates  of  naturalization 
granted  by  state  or  federal  courts  since  1906,  as  well 
as  the  declarations  of  intention  to  become  citizens,  — 
and  annually  there  are  received  approximately  400,000 
naturalization  papers,  —  and  the  bureau  has  charge  of 
all  naturalization  cases.  All  manner  of  vital  facts  are 
collected  and  published  by  the  Bureau  of  Labor  Statis- 
tics, while  the  Children's  Bureau  devotes  itself  to  that 
most  necessary  safeguard  of  the  future  of  the  nation  — 
the  welfare  of  the  men  and  women  who  shall  labor  with 
arm  and  head  for  the  continuance  of  the  national  life. 
Altogether,  the  Department  of  Labor  is  a  most  useful 
and  necessary  branch  of  the  Federal  Executive,  and 
no  department  presents  more  important  possibilities 
of  national  usefulness  "in  promoting  the  general  wel- 
fare." 


CHAPTER  X 

FUNCTIONS  OF  THE  EXECUTIVE  DEPARTMENTS  IN 

SECURING   CERTAIN   OF    "THE   BLESSINGS  OF 

LIBERTY."  THE  POST-OFFICE  DEPARTMENT 

By  the  side  of  the  magnificent  Union  Station  in  Wash- 
ington is  the  new  City  Post- Office,  a  huge  marble  edi- 
fice belonging  to  the  Post-Office  Department  which  has 
just  been  erected.  Carved  upon  the  front  of  this  build- 
ing are  a  number  of  sentences  descriptive  of  the  work 
of  the  biggest  business  organization  the  United  States 
at  present  conducts.  I  have  elsewhere  said  that  I  anti- 
cipated as  the  next  department  to  be  created  a  Depart- 
ment of  Transportation,  but  this  new  building  is  closely 
allied  with  a  great  transportation  business  which  the 
United  States  already  conducts.  The  inscriptions  on 
the  front  of  this  building  are  strikingly  descriptive  of 
the  work  of  the  Post-Office  Department:  — 

MESSENGER    OF   SYMPATHY   AND   LOVE 
SERVANT   OF  PARTED   FRIENDS 
CONSOLER   OF  THE   LONELY 
BOND   OF   THE   SCATTERED   FAMILY 
ENLARGER    OF    THE    COMMON   LIFE 
CARRIER   OF  NEWS  AND   KNOWLEDGE 
INSTRUMENT   OF  TRADE   AND   INDUSTRY 
PROMOTER   OF   MUTUAL  ACQUAINTANCE,   OF 

PEACE  AND   GOOD-WILL  AMONG  MEN  AND 

NATIONS. 

Throughout  the  whole  of  the  United  States,  in  all 
cities  and  towns  of  any  importance,  are  substantial  and 


THE  POST-OFFICE  DEPARTMENT      183 

in  some  cases  large  and  very  costly  buildings  belonging 
to  the  department,  and  in  the  smallest  villages,  usually 
in  the  "village  store,"  are  local  branches  of  the  Post- 
Office.  On  January  1, 1915,  there  were  in  all  the  various 
branches  of  the  department  over  300,000  people  em- 
ployed. Of  this  number  521  were  first-class  postmasters, 
having  charge  of  the  department's  work  in  such  great 
cities  as  New  York,  Chicago,  Baltimore,  and  others. 
There  were  at  the  same  time  2080  second-class  post- 
masters, 6304  third-class  postmasters,  and  47,636 
fourth-class  postmasters  in  charge  of  cities,  towns,  and 
localities,  making  a  total  of  56,541  post-offices. 

At  the  Post-Office  Department  Building,  on  Pennsyl- 
vania Avenue  in  Washington,  are  the  executive  offices 
of  this  vast  system,  by  which  money,  letters,  or  fresh- 
laid  eggs  may  be  sent  to  and  from  all  parts  of  the  Union 
at  extremely  low  prices.  The  Post-Office  is  the  only 
department  of  the  Government  which  conducts  an  en- 
terprise which  is  not  of  necessity  governmental  in  its 
functions,  and  its  transactions  are  in  themselves  those 
of  a  huge  and  well-organized  corporation.  It  is  not  only 
a  carrier,  but  a  bank,  for  by  means  of  its  money-order 
branch  it  conducts  a  domestic  and  foreign  exchange 
business,  and  through  the  postal  savings  system,  it 
affords  savings-bank  facilities  to  the  smallest  depositor 
in  the  most  remote  districts  of  the  nation. 

The  Postmaster-General's  duties  are  similar  to  those 
of  the  president  of  a  great  railroad,  and  the  four  As- 
sistant Postmasters-General  perform  duties  similar  to 
those  of  the  vice-presidents  of  such  a  railway  system. 


184  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

The  department  has  its  own  law  department,  a  part  of 
the  Department  of  Justice,  and  its  own  force  of  inspec- 
tors, who  see  that  its  work  is  properly  done  and  that 
its  officers  are  honest  and  efficient.  Its  uniformed  and 
ununiformed  employees  are  met  with  in  every  street 
and  along  every  country  road,  and  it  enters  into  the 
daily  life  of  nearly  every  citizen  of  the  Union.  Over 
11,000,000,000  postage  stamps  of  various  sorts  on  news- 
paper wrappers,  post-cards,  stamped  envelopes,  and  of 
different  denominations  are  issued  every  year,  and  it  has 
been  computed  that  this  means  that  more  than  a  thou- 
sand stamps,  irrespective  of  varying  denominations,  are 
used  annually  for  each  man,  woman,  and  child  in  the 
United  States.  The  annual  receipts  of  the  Chicago  Post- 
Office  are  said  to  be  larger  than  were  those  of  the  Federal 
Treasury  from  all  sources  at  the  beginning  of  the  Civil 
War.  The  annual  receipts  of  the  Post-Office  of  New  York 
City,  which  is  the  largest  in  the  country,  are  more 
than  $23,000,000  a  year.  The  extent  of  the  dealings  of 
the  American  people  with  this  huge  transportation  sys- 
tem can  best  be  realized  by  the  estimate  that  each 
individual  in  the  country  pays  about  $2.29  a  year  for 
postage.  In  1837,  the  average  per-capita  expenditure  a 
year  for  postage  was  about  $.32. 

The  Postmaster-General  is,  therefore,  an  often  over- 
worked business  man,  for  upon  him  devolves  the  direc- 
tion of  the  whole  system.  In  the  general  Post-Office 
Building  in  Washington  is  a  small  private  elevator 
leading  to  the  Postmaster-General's  offices  which  car- 
ries a  constant  stream  of  Senators,  Representatives  in 


THE  POST-OFFICE  DEPARTMENT      185 

Congress,  contractors  of  all  sorts,  and  others  from  all 
parts  of  the  country,  and  during  the  inauguration  of 
the  reforms  instituted  by  Postmaster-General  Hitch- 
cock on  many  nights  this  little  elevator  was  often  in 
service  until  after  midnight.  The  Postmaster-General 
is  usually  a  man  of  broad  business  training,  although, 
because  of  the  numerous  offices  to  be  filled  in  his  de- 
partment, he  is  called  upon  to  deal  largely  in  what  is 
popularly  termed  "politics."  Such  Postmasters-Gen- 
eral as  James  A.  Gary,  of  Maryland,  who  left  a  multi- 
tude of  varying  business  interests  to  serve  in  President 
McKinley's  Cabinet,  and  John  Wanamaker,  head  of  the 
great  Wanamaker  department  stores,  are  prominent 
types  of  Postmasters-General  who  brought  to  the  office 
wide  business  experience.  Sir  William  Anson  says  the 
English  Postmaster-General  "is  no  more  than  the  acting 
manager  of  a  great  business,  with  little  discretionary 
power  except  in  the  exercise  of  the  very  considerable 
patronage  of  his  office."  l  Our  Postmaster-General  is 
all  of  that  and  something  more. 

The  work  of  the  department  is  conducted  through 
four  divisions,  and  in  addition  certain  matters  are 
under  the  supervision  of  the  director  of  the  postal  sav- 
ings system,  the  chief  post-office  inspector,  the  pur- 
chasing agent,  and  the  solicitor  for  the  Post-Office 
Department.  At  the  head  of  each  of  the  four  divisions 
is  an  Assistant  Postmaster-General.  The  functions  of 
the  department  can  best  be  considered  under  these 
divisions.  Roughly  characterizing  the  duties  of  these 
1  Law  and  Custom  of  the  Constitution,  vol.  II,  p.  184. 


186  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

executive  officers,  the  First  Assistant  has  charge  of 
personnel;  the  Second  Assistant,  of  transportation;  the 
Third  Assistant,  of  finance;  and  the  Fourth  Assistant, 
of  miscellaneous  matters. 

The  matters  of  personnel  dealt  with  by  the  First 
Assistant  include  primarily  the  appointment  of  post- 
masters. The  preparation  of  cases  for  appointment, 
supervision  of  postmasters'  bonding  and  commissions, 
charges  and  complaints  against  them,  regulation  of 
their  hours  of  business  and  leaves  of  absence,  —  all  are 
under  the  charge  of  the  First  Assistant.  Matters  relating 
to  their  salaries,  clerk  hire,  rent,  light,  fuel,  canceling- 
machines,  are  also  within  his  jurisdiction.  Changing 
the  names  of  existing  post-offices,  fixing  sites  for  new 
post-offices,  the  establishing  of  postal  stations,  and 
such  matters  are  part  of  the  work  of  this  division.  The 
taxing  details  of  the  city  delivery  service  include  such 
matters  as  letter-carriers'  pay,  horse-hire,  wagon-col- 
lection equipment,  and  general  supervision  of  carriers. 

The  Post-Office  Department  has  contracts  with  a 
vast  network  of  railway  and  steamship  corporations 
throughout  the  entire  country,  and  in  charge  of  all 
these  matters  of  transportation  is  the  Second  Assistant 
Postmaster-General.  The  official  analysis  of  his  duties 
classifies  them  under  the  headings  of  railroad  adjust- 
ments, miscellaneous  transportation,  foreign  mails,  rail- 
way mail  service,  and  equipment.  The  General  Post- 
Office  was  constituted  the  Post-Office  Department  by 
Act  of  Congress,  approved  June  8,  1872.  The  ever- 
increasing  functions  of  the  Post-Office  Department  can 


THE  POST-OFFICE  DEPARTMENT      187 

be  best  appreciated  by  a  consideration  of  the  work 
done  under  the  direction  of  the  Second  Assistant.  With 
the  recent  assumption  by  the  department,  under  the 
parcel  post  service,  inaugurated  through  the  efforts  of 
Postmaster-General  Hitchcock,  of  the  business  hitherto 
exclusively  carried  on  by  express  companies,  the  Fed- 
eral Government  has  extended  its  functions  to  matters 
logically  within  its  duties,  which  have  for  a  long  time 
been  exercised  by  European  Governments.  The  ex- 
tension of  the  Post-Office  Department,  however,  is 
a  result  of  the  increased  demands  in  population  of 
the  country  and  is  directly  no  encroachment  upon  the 
rights  of  the  States,  since,  from  the  beginning  of  the 
Union,  the  States  have  had  nothing  to  do  with  the 
posts. 

The  parcel  post  service  has  been  in  operation  for  less 
than  three  years,  but  it  is  estimated  that  at  the  present 
time  it  handles  more  than  800,000,000  parcels  annually. 
This  service  is  not  only  domestic,  but  on  the  9th  of 
May,  1914,  a  parcel  post  service  with  Greece  was  in- 
augurated. Parcel  post  conventions  with  the  Bahamas, 
Barbados,  British  Honduras,  Ecuador,  Jamaica,  and 
other  places  have  also  been  made,  and  negotiations  are 
now  in  progress  for  similar  conventions  with  Cuba, 
Argentina,  China,  Portugal,  Russia,  Spain,  and  other 
countries.  The  parcel  post  service  has  added  to  the 
department  most  extensive  and  important  duties,  and 
though,  in  the  opinion  of  the  department,  it  is,  as  yet, 
in  some  respects,  only  in  the  experimental  stage,  the 
increased  volume  of  this  business  has  presented  many 


188  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

difficult  problems  in  connection  with  the  transportation 
and  handling  of  the  mail. 

The  rural  delivery  service,  by  which  letters,  news- 
papers, money,  and  merchandise  are  delivered  to  often 
remote  habitations  in  sparsely  settled  districts,  is  under 
the  direction  of  the  Fourth  Assistant  Postmaster-Gen- 
eral. To  me,  the  rural  delivery  service  and  the  parcel 
post  are  typical  of  the  increased  influence  of  the  Federal 
Executive,  and  indicate  the  manner  in  which  the  indi- 
vidual citizen  of  the  whole  Union  is,  through  the  Fed- 
eral Government,  brought  into  direct  communication 
with  the  business  life  of  the  great  cities.  They  are  also 
typical  of  the  general  "personal  unification"  of  the 
nation,  since  the  establishment  of  rural  delivery  mail 
routes  and  the  parcel  post  usually  means  a  lessening 
of  the  business  of  local  country  post-offices.  These 
post-offices  have  usually  been  located  in  the  one  and 
only  store  of  the  village.  Upon  the  establishment  of 
the  rural  delivery,  many  of  its  patrons  cease  their  pur- 
chases at  the  local  store  which  they  had  formerly  of 
necessity  visited  to  get  their  mail,  and  purchase  and 
receive  through  the  post-office  service  their  household 
requirements  from  the  huge  mail  order  commercial 
houses  that  have  arisen  in  the  great  cities.  In  the  opin- 
ion of  the  present  Postmaster-General,  the  rural  deliv- 
ery service  not  only  improves  the  condition  of  farm 
life,  but  tends  to  check  the  movement  of  the  rural  popu- 
lation to  the  congested  urban  communities;  but  in 
his  last  report  he  calls  to  the  attention  of  Congress  the 
fact  that  this  service  entails  an  annual  expense  of 


THE  POST-OFFICE  DEPARTMENT      189 

$40,000,000,  in  excess  of  the  revenues  produced  by  such 
services.1 

The  Treasury  Department  receives  customs  duties, 
internal  revenue  taxes,  income  taxes,  and  even  war 
taxes,  but  all  of  this  income  is  a  return  from  taxation. 
The  Post-Office  Department  is  the  only  department 
which  directly  receives  compensation  for  services  ren- 
dered to  the  "consumer."  It  is  the  largest  postal  es- 
tablishment in  the  world,  and  it  deals  with  about  one 
third  of  the  aggregate  postal  business  of  all  civilized 
nations.  Until  the  administration  of  Postmaster-Gen- 
eral Hitchcock,  there  existed  an  annual  deficit  in  the 
years  immediately  prior  to  his  appointment  of  some 
$10,000,000  to  $18,000,000  a  year.  He,  by  far-reaching 
reforms,  succeeded  in  eliminating  this  deficit  and  mak- 
ing the  postal  service  not  only  self-supporting  but  a 
paying  institution.2  The  report  of  the  Postmaster-Gen- 
eral for  the  year  1914  shows  that  for  the  year  ending 
June  30,  1914,  the  income  of  the  Post-Office  Depart- 
ment was  $287,934,565.67,  and  its  expenditures  $284,- 
350,545.21,  leaving  an  estimated  surplus  of  $3,569,- 
687.  In  reference  to  this  surplus  Postmaster-General 
Burleson  says:  "In  considering  the  financial  condition 
of  the  postal  service  certain  other  factors  must  be  taken 
into  account;  as,  for  example,  rental  at  a  fair  value  of 
federal  buildings,  fixtures,  and  equipment  used  wholly 
or  in  part  for  postal  purposes,  and  the  expenses  incident 
to  the  conduct  of  the  Post-Office  Department  and  the 

1  Report  of  the  Postmaster-General  for  191  k. 

2  Frederick  J.  Haskin,  The  American  Government,  p.  65. 


190  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

office  of  the  Auditor  for  the  Post-Office  Department, 
which  are  not  now  charged  against  the  postal  service. 
On  the  other  hand,  the  department  does  not  receive 
credit  for  the  unrecompensed  performance  of  func- 
tions, such  as  the  free  transportation  of  franked  and 
penalty  mail  and  the  handling  of  second-class  mail  mat- 
ter under  a  virtual  subsidy  of  more  than  $50,000,000 
a  year."  * 

"Franked"  mail  is  that  sent  free  by  members  of 
Congress,  and  "penalty"  mail  is  that  sent  by  the  various 
departments  and  officers  of  the  Government  on  official 
business.  The  latter  derives  its  name  from  the  imprint 
it  bears,  "Official  Business.  Penalty  for  private  use 
$300."  It  costs  to  transmit  second-class  mail  matter, 
as  shown  by  the  above  Report,  about  $50,000,000  a 
year  more  than  the  senders  pay  the  Government,  but 
the  magazine  and  periodical  publishers  have  so  far  suc- 
cessfully prevented  any  increase  in  the  second-class 
postal  rate.  Among  the  most  needed  reforms  in  the 
postal  service  are  the  prevention  of  abuses  of  the  frank- 
ing privilege  and  rearrangement  of  the  rates  of  second- 
class  matter.  In  a  case  recently  investigated  by  the  Post- 
Office  Department,  the  Government  was  defrauded  out 
of  $57,600  of  postage  for  pamphlets  which  were  im- 
properly transmitted  under  the  franking  privilege. 

The  Post-Office  has  long  conducted  a  domestic  ex- 
change business  by  means  of  money  orders,  and  the 
year  ending  June  30,  1914,  marked  the  close  of  the  first 
half -century  of  the  operation  of  the  postal  money-order 
1  Report  of  the  Postmaster-General  for  191  b,  p.  5. 


THE  POST-OFFICE  DEPARTMENT      191 

system.  In  the  beginning,  money  orders  could  be  ob- 
tained at  419  post-offices.  At  the  present  time  they 
are  available  at  55,055  offices,  and  during  the  last  fiscal 
year  money  orders  were  issued  aggregating  over  $667,- 
000,000.  The  Post-Office  also  does  an  international 
money-order  business  and  therefore  conducts  another 
function  of  an  international  banking  house. 

Another  important  phase  of  the  banking  function 
of  the  Post-Office  Department  is  the  postal  savings 
system.  In  1911,  Postmaster-General  Hitchcock  estab- 
lished this  system,  the  receipt  of  deposits  having  begun 
on  January  3, 1911,  in  the  post-offices  in  various  States. 
The  postal  savings  system  has  met  with  great  popular 
approval,  and  the  Report  of  the  Postmaster-General  for 
1914  shows  that  on  June  30, 1914,  the  number  of  depos- 
itors was  nearly  390,000,  while  the  amount  on  deposit 
to  their  credit  was  over  $43,000,000,  showing  an  aver- 
age increase  in  the  principal  of  each  depositor  from  $102 
to  $111  and  a  large  increase  in  the  number  of  depos- 
itors and  depositories. 

This  system  was  inaugurated  for  the  purpose  of  en- 
couraging habits  of  saving  among  the  mass  of  the  peo- 
ple of  the  country,  and  apparently  the  object  for  which 
the  system  was  instituted  is  being  attained.  At  present 
the  amount  that  may  be  deposited  is  restricted.  No 
one  depositor  can  place  in  the  postal  savings  system 
more  than  $100  a  month,  and  he  cannot  have  more 
than  $500  on  deposit,  but  recommendations  have  been 
made  by  the  Postmaster-General  to  Congress  that  these 
amounts  be  increased. 


192  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

The  United  States,  through  the  post-office,  furnishes 
inexpensive,  prompt,  and  most  efficient  communica- 
tion between  all  parts  of  the  country.  Benefits  of  the 
postal  service  are  a  common  benefit  to  all  of  the  people, 
and  the  Government  has  provided  strong  safeguards 
against  the  abuse  of  the  great  privilege  it  thus  affords. 
It  is  the  duty  of  the  Solicitor  for  the  Post-Office  l  and 
of  the  Department  of  Justice,  through  its  district  at- 
torneys, to  protect  the  people  of  the  nation  from  such 
abuses.  By  the  use  of  the  postal  service,  the  traditional 
"gold-brick"  man  of  the  great  city  may  be  brought 
into  easy  communication  with  the  inhabitant  of  the 
smallest  rural  district,  unversed  in  the  ways  of  fraud 
and  knavery  of  the  great  cities,  and  one  of  the  most 
interesting  class  of  cases  that  the  Department  of  Jus- 
tice is  called  upon  to  handle  relates  to  the  prevention 
of  fraudulent  use  of  the  mails.  I  have  already  referred 
to  these  matters  in  describing  the  duties  of  the  Depart- 
ment of  Justice.  Until  the  amendment  of  the  Federal 
Penal  Code  of  1909,  the  mails  were  flooded  with  fraud- 
ulent stock-selling  schemes  of  all  kinds.  Since  that 
time  a  great  number  of  persons,  some  of  whom  bore 
undeserved  excellent  reputations  in  the  community, 
have  gone  to  the  penitentiary  for  defrauding  widows 
and  orphans  through  the  mails,  and  the  Department 
of  Justice  is  constantly  alert  to  protect  the  postal  serv- 
ice, which,  of  all  the  branches  of  the  Federal  Execu- 

1  The  Assistant  Attorney-General  for  the  Post-Office  Depart- 
ment became  the  Solicitor  for  the  Post-Office  Department  by  Act 
of  Congress,  approved  July  16,  1914. 


THE  POST-OFFICE  DEPARTMENT      193 

tive,  most  nearly  touches  the  daily  life  of  the  individual 
citizen  of  the  Union.  The  extent  of  the  fraudulent  use 
of  the  mails  can  best  be  realized  by  the  fact  that  the 
reports  of  the  post-office  inspectors  for  the  year  ending 
June  30,  1914,  show  that  the  promoters  of  fraudulent 
schemes  carried  out  through  using  the  mails  obtained 
approximately  $68,000,000  from  the  public.  The  de- 
partment considers  that  one  of  the  best  illustrations  of 
the  method  in  which  money  is  obtained  from  ignorant 
persons  through  the  mails  has  been  in  the  exploiting 
of  alleged  remedies  for  various  diseases  advertised  in  a 
manner  to  frighten  ignorant  people  into  believing  harm- 
less aches  and  pains  to  be  symptoms  of  serious  diseases 
and  causing  them  to  pay  exorbitant  prices  for  worth- 
less alleged  remedies. 

The  Post-Office  Department  is  a  thoroughly  up-to- 
date  business  institution.  Nothing  more  clearly  shows 
this  than  the  fact  that,  while  the  army  and  navy  are 
deficient  in  aerial  defenses,  during  the  past  year  the 
Post-Office  Department  has  been  conducting  eight 
experimental  aerial  mail-service  stations.  For  many 
years  the  Postmasters-General  have  cast  covetous  eyes 
toward  the  privately  owned  telegraph  and  telephone 
lines,  and  the  future  will  undoubtedly  see  strong  efforts 
made  for  government  ownership  of  such  public  utilities. 


CHAPTER  XI 

THE  CHIEF  EXECUTIVES  AND  THE  DEVELOPMENT 
OF  THE  EXECUTIVE  DEPARTMENTS 

In  the  preceding  chapters  we  have  seen  the  creation 
of  the  Federal  Executive,  have  traced  its  development, 
and  noted  and  examined  its  organization  and  functions. 
Before  concluding  these  studies  by  a  discussion  of  the 
probability  of  the  developments  of  the  future,  it  will  be 
of  interest  to  see  what  part  has  been  played  in  the  past 
by  various  of  the  Presidents  in  relation  to  the  expansion 
of  the  National  Executive  Administration.  President 
Wilson  has  had  twenty-six  predecessors,  every  one  of 
whom  has,  in  a  greater  or  less  degree,  exercised  an  influ- 
ence on  the  Federal  Executive.  It  is  a  difficult  thing 
for  the  student  and  increasingly  difficult  for  the  general 
reader  to  carry  in  his  mind  the  list  of  the  twenty-seven 
Chief  Executives.  There  is  probably  not  one  person  out 
of  every  one  hundred  in  the  United  States  who  could  off- 
hand give  the  names  of  all  twenty-seven.  I  have  always 
recollected  with  considerable  amusement  a  "memory 
expert"  who  came  to  the  preparatory  school  I  attended, 
with  the  avowed  purpose  of  teaching  us  all  how,  easily, 
to  remember  any  long  list  of  names.  He  outlined  a 
method  by  which  we  could  remember  in  order  all  of  the 
Presidents  of  the  United  States.  I  have  never  been 
able  to  recall  his  proposed  method  of  association  of  the 


THE  CHIEF  EXECUTIVES  195 

various  Presidents  except  as  to  Washington  and  Adams, 
but  by  reason  of  his  instruction,  I  have  never  had  any 
difficulty  in  remembering  that  Adams  was  the  second 
President.  He  said  that  we  must  start  with  the  premise 
that  everybody  knew  that  Washington  was  the  first 
President.  The  first  four  letters  of  his  name  spell 
"Wash."  "Even  the  most  stupid  schoolboy  knew," 
said  the  "memory  expert,"  "that  it  was  impossible  to 
wash  without  water."  Water  naturally  suggested,  even 
to  the  mind  of  average  intelligence,  a  very  usual  means 
of  conducting  water,  to  wit,  a  hose.  Hose,  of  course, 
would  immediately  recall  to  our  minds  the  most  com- 
mon form  of  hose,  that  is  to  say,  a  "garden  hose."  At 
this  point  his  face  became  illuminated  with  the  ap- 
proaching climax  of  his  association  of  ideas.  Garden 
hose  reminded  us  of  "garden";  "garden"  reminded  us 
of  the  "Garden  of  Eden"  (it  was  assumed  that  we  had 
been  properly  instructed  in  the  Scriptures);  "Garden 
of  Eden"  reminded  us  of  Adam  and  Eve,  and  immedi- 
ately the  mind  was  able  to  draw  out  of  its  subconscious- 
ness the  fact  that  the  second  President  was  Adams. 
I  have  no  easy  method  to  suggest  for  a  recollection  of 
the  twenty-seven  Presidents  of  the  United  States,  but 
it  will  be  helpful  to  recall  that  they  were  Washing- 
ton, Adams,  Jefferson,  Madison,  Monroe,  John  Quincy 
Adams,  Jackson,  Van  Buren,  William  Henry  Harrison, 
Tyler,  Polk,  Taylor,  Fillmore,  Pierce,  Buchanan,  Lin- 
coln, Johnson,  Grant,  Hayes,  Garfield,  Arthur,  Cleve- 
land, Benjamin  Harrison,  McKinley,  the  two  living  ex- 
Presidents,  Mr.  Roosevelt  and  Mr.  Taft,  and  the  present 


196  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

Chief  Executive,  Mr.  Wilson.1  The  ten  executive  de- 
partments were  created  or  attained  executive  rank  in  the 
administrations  of  eight  Presidents.  The  Departments 
of  State,  War,  and  the  Treasury  were  all  created  in 
Washington's  first  Administration,  between  July  27  and 
September  2,  1789.  The  office  of  Attorney-General  was 
created  at  the  same  time,  but  the  Attorney-General  did 
not  become  the  head  of  the  Department  of  Justice  until 
the  Administration  of  President  Grant,  when  the  De- 
partment of  Justice  was  created  June  22,  1870.  The 
General  Post-Office  was  also  created  in  1789  in  Washing- 
ton's first  Administration,  but  the  Postmaster-General 
was  not  admitted  to  the  Cabinet  as  the  head  of  an  execu- 
tive department  coordinate  with  those  of  State,  War, 
and  the  Treasury  until  the  first  Administration  of  Presi- 
dent Jackson  in  1829.  The  Department  of  the  Navy 
was  created  April  30, 1798,  during  the  Administration  of 
President  Adams,  while  the  signing  of  the  act  providing 
for  the  Department  of  the  Interior,  on  March  3, 1849, 
was  one  of  the  last  acts  President  Polk  performed  as 
Chief  Executive.  The  following  day,  March  4,  1849, 
President  Taylor  was  inaugurated,  and  appointed  the 
first  Secretary  of  the  Interior.  The  Department  of 
Agriculture  was  created  during  President  Cleveland's 
first  term,  February  9,  1889,  while  the  Department  of 
Commerce  and  Labor  was  instituted  during  President 
Roosevelt's  Administration  in  1903,  and  the  Department 
of  Labor  in  that  of  President  Wilson  in  1913.  Although 

1  For  a  complete  list  of  Presidents,  Vice-Presidents,  and  the 
respective  terms  of  each,  see  Appendix  I. 


THE  CHIEF  EXECUTIVES  197 

these  departments,  with  the  exception  of  the  original 
departments,  were  created  during  different  Administra- 
tions, almost  every  President  had  made  some  recom- 
mendation to  Congress  concerning  the  necessity  of  the 
departments  which  were  afterwards  created. 

When  Washington  delivered  his  inaugural  address, 
April  30,  1789,  he  made  no  specific  recommendation  to 
Congress  for  the  creation  of  any  executive  departments. 
When  he  sent  his  first  annual  message  to  Congress,  the 
executive  machinery  for  the  Government  had  been  pro- 
vided for;  but  in  his  first  inaugural  address  he  said:  "It 
will  be  more  consistent  with  those  circumstances,  and 
far  more  congenial  with  the  feelings  which  actuate  me, 
to  substitute,  in  place  of  a  recommendation  of  particu- 
lar measures,  the  tribute  that  is  due  to  the  talents,  the 
rectitude,  and  the  patriotism  which  adorn  the  charac- 
ters selected  to  devise  and  adopt  them."  l  On  June  8, 
1789,  however,  he  sent  to  the  Secretary  of  Foreign 
Affairs,  the  Secretary  of  War,  the  Board  of  the  Treasury, 
and  the  Postmaster-General  who  had  served  under  the 
Articles  of  Confederation  and  who  had  remained  in 
charge  of  the  executive  machinery,  the  following  inter- 
esting communication:  "Although  in  the  present  unset- 
tled state  of  the  executive  departments  under  the  Gov- 
ernment of  the  Union  I  do  not  conceive  it  expedient  to 
call  upon  you  for  information  officially,  yet  I  have  sup- 
posed that  some  informal  communications  from  the 
Office  of  Foreign  Affairs  might  neither  be  improper  nor 
unprofitable.  Finding  myself  at  this  moment  less  occu- 
1  Messages  and  Papers  of  the  Presidents,  vol.  I,  p.  52. 


198  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

pied  with  the  duties  of  my  office  than  I  shall  probably  be 
at  almost  any  time  hereafter,  I  am  desirous  of  employ- 
ing myself  in  obtaining  an  acquaintance  with  the  real 
situation  of  the  several  great  departments  at  the  period 
of  my  acceding  to  the  administration  of  the  General 
Government.  For  this  purpose  I  wish  to  receive  in  writ- 
ing such  a  clear  account  of  the  department  at  the  head 
of  which  you  have  been  for  some  years  past  as  may 
be  sufficient  (without  overburthening  or  confusing  the 
mind,  which  has  very  many  objects  to  claim  its  atten- 
tion at  the  same  instant),  to  impress  me  with  the  full, 
precise,  and  distinct  general  idea  of  the  affairs  of  the 
United  States  so  far  as  they  are  comprehended  in  or  con- 
nected with  that  department.  As  I  am  now  at  leisure  to 
inspect  such  papers  and  documents  as  may  be  necessary 
to  be  acted  upon  hereafter  or  as  may  be  calculated  to 
give  me  an  insight  into  the  business  and  duties  of  that 
department,  I  have  thought  fit  to  address  this  notifica- 
tion to  you  accordingly."  l  The  act  providing  for  the 
Department  of  Foreign  Affairs,  which  afterwards  be- 
came the  Department  of  State,  was  passed  within  six 
weeks  of  the  time  Washington  sent  the  above  communi- 
cations, and  the  Departments  of  War  and  the  Treasury 
were  created  almost  immediately  thereafter.  Although 
we  find  no  formal  message  to  Congress  from  Washington 
on  the  subject  of  the  executive  departments,  he  was  un- 
doubtedly in  constant  communication  with  Hamilton, 
Madison,  and  those  in  Congress  who  were  chiefly  re- 
sponsible for  the  legislation  creating  the  departments. 
1  Sparks,  The  Writings  of  Washington,  vol.  x,  pp.  11-12. 


THE  CHIEF  EXECUTIVES  199 

We  know  that  Madison,  who  afterwards  himself  became 
President,  offered  the  resolution  in  Congress  to  create 
the  executive  departments  of  Foreign  Affairs,  of  the 
Treasury,  and  of  War.1  The  Post-Office  Department 
was  created  at  about  the  same  time,  and  the  judiciary 
act  which  provided  for  the  Attorney-General  was  formu- 
lated at  the  same  period,  and  undoubtedly  Washington 
participated  actively  in  the  preparation  of  these  acts. 
Soon  after  his  inauguration,  Washington  said:  "The  es- 
tablishment of  our  new  Government  seemed  to  be  the 
last  great  experiment  for  promoting  human  happiness 
by  a  reasonable  compact  in  civil  society.  .  .  .  There  is 
scarcely  any  part  of  my  conduct  which  may  not  here- 
after be  drawn  into  precedent."  2  Washington  fre- 
quently referred  to  the  United  States  as  an  infant  em- 
pire, and  he  saw,  before  any  one  else,  the  marvelous 
future  of  the  new  Union.  When  he  became  President, 
there  was  no  Government  except  a  President  and  a 
Congress.  No  man  was  able  to  exercise  more  influence 
and  in  a  greater  measure  to  mould  the  character  of  the 
new  experiment  in  government  and  no  man  could  have 
done  it  more  wisely  than  he.  He  was  one  of  the  most 
able  judges  of  men  the  nation  has  ever  known,  and  he 
drew  about  him  a  Cabinet  which  such  an  authority  as 
Senator  Lodge  says,  "in  its  aggregate  ability  never  has 
been  equaled  in  this  country." 3 
The  Department  of  the  Navy  was  not  created  until 

1  Sydney  Howard  Gay,  Life  of  James  Madison,  p.  143. 

2  Henry  Cabot  Lodge,  Life  of  George  Washington,  vol.  I,  p.  7. 

3  Ibid.,  vol.  II,  p.  63. 


200  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

nine  years  after  the  other  departments.  We  have  al- 
ready seen  how  in  the  beginning  the  Secretary  of  War 
had  charge  of  naval  affairs.  Foreign  complications 
made  a  navy  especially  necessary  under  the  Adminis- 
tration of  President  Adams.  On  May  16,  1797,  in  a 
message  to  a  special  session  of  Congress,  President 
Adams  said:  "The  naval  establishment  must  occur  to 
every  man  who  considers  the  injuries  committed  on  our 
commerce,  the  insults  offered  to  our  citizens,  and  the 
description  of  vessels  by  which  these  abuses  have  been 
pr?cticed.  ...  A  naval  power,  next  to  the  militia,  is  the 
natural  defense  of  the  United  States.  .  .  .  Our  seacoasts, 
from  their  great  extent,  are  more  easily  annoyed  and 
more  easily  defended  by  a  naval  force  than  any  other. . . . 
But  although  the  establishment  of  a  permanent  system 
of  naval  defense  appears  to  be  requisite,  I  am  sensible 
it  could  not  be  formed  so  speedily  and  extensively  as  the 
present  crisis  demands."  l  Adams  had  always  taken 
especial  interest  in  the  navy.  Coming  as  he  did  from 
New  England,  which  at  that  time  was  the  shipping  cen- 
ter, the  need  of  a  sufficiently  powerful  navy  had  always 
been  a  favorite  measure  with  him  and  one  that  he  had 
urged  constantly.  During  the  Revolution  he  had  taken 
a  special  interest  in  the  navy  and  believed  that  the 
United  States  should  be  a  great  naval  power.  In  Janu- 
ary, 1798,  the  relations  of  the  United  States  with  France 
became  critical.  President  Adams  conferred  with  his 
Cabinet  and  the  consensus  of  opinion  was  that  the  navy 
should  be  at  once  increased.  On  March  5, 1798,  Adams 
1  Messages  and  Papers  of  the  Presidents,  vol.  I,  pp.  236-37. 


THE  CHIEF  EXECUTIVES  201 

advised  Congress  of  the  failure  of  the  mission  he  had 
sent  to  France  and  advised  continuance  of  immediate 
preparations  against  a  very  probable  war.  These  efforts 
of  President  Adams  resulted  in  the  creation  of  the  De- 
partment of  the  Navy  on  April  13,  1798. 

Washington's  first  Cabinet  contained  in  it  men  of 
diametrically  opposed  political  principles  who  could  not 
possibly  have  served  together  under  any  other  man  than 
Washington.  Alexander  Hamilton,  one  of  the  ablest, 
keenest,  and  most  constructive  statesmen  of  any  age, 
enjoyed  the  complete  confidence  of  his  chief.  By  evry 
tendency  of  his  nature  Hamilton  favored  a  strong  and 
powerful  Federal  Government,  and  the  Federal  Execu- 
tive of  to-day  bears  his  stamp  upon  it  still.  Thomas 
Jefferson,  the  Secretary  of  State,  however,  was  extremely 
fearful  of  the  power  of  the  Federal  Government,  and 
during  his  Administration  as  President  no  steps  were 
taken  toward  the  increase  of  the  executive  power.  We 
have,  however,  a  very  interesting  commentary  from 
Jefferson  concerning  the  manner  in  which  Washington 
and  Adams  conducted  the  executive  business.  Jeffer- 
son disliked  Adams,  from  whom  he  differed  on  almost 
every  conceivable  subject,  and  this  must  be  borne  in 
mind  in  reading  his  criticisms  of  President  Adams's 
Administration.  Jefferson  was  inaugurated  March  4, 
1801,  and  on  November  6  of  the  same  year,  he  issued 
a  circular  to  the  heads  of  the  executive  departments. 
It  throws  so  much  light  upon  the  Cabinet  of  those 
early  days  that  it  is  proper  to  quote  a  large  part  of  it. 
Jefferson  said  to  the  members  of  his  Cabinet:  "Com- 


202  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

ing  all  of  us  into  executive  office  new  and  unfamiliar 
with  the  course  of  business  previously  practiced,  it 
was  not  to  be  expected  we  should  in  the  first  outset 
adopt  in  every  part  a  line  of  proceeding  so  perfect  as  to 
admit  no  amendment.  The  mode  and  degrees  of  com- 
munication particularly  between  the  Presidents  and 
heads  of  departments  have  not  been  practiced  exactly 
on  the  same  scale  in  all  of  them,  yet  it  would  certainly 
be  more  safe  and  satisfactory  for  ourselves  as  well  as  for 
the  public  that  not  only  the  best,  but  also  an  uniform 
course  of  proceeding  as  to  manner  and  degree  should  be 
observed.  Having  been  a  member  of  the  first  Admin- 
istration under  General  Washington,  I  can  state  with 
exactness  what  our  course  then  was.  Letters  of  busi- 
ness came  addressed  sometimes  to  the  President,  but 
most  frequently  to  the  heads  of  departments.  If  ad- 
dressed to  himself,  he  referred  them  to  the  proper  de- 
partment to  be  acted  on.  If  to  one  of  the  Secretaries, 
the  letter,  if  it  required  no  answer,  was  communicated 
to  the  President  simply  for  his  information.  If  an 
answer  was  requisite,  the  Secretary  of  the  department 
communicated  the  letter  and  his  proposed  answer  to  the 
President.  Generally  they  were  simply  sent  back  after 
perusal  which  signified  his  approbation.  Sometimes  he  re- 
turned them  with  an  informal  note  suggesting  an  altera- 
tion or  a  query.  If  a  doubt  of  any  importance  arose,  he 
reserved  it  for  conference.  By  this  means  he  was  always 
in  accurate  possession  of  all  facts  and  proceedings  in 
every  part  of  the  Union,  and  to  whatsoever  department 
they  related:  he  formed  a  central  point  for  the  different 


THE  CHIEF  EXECUTIVES  203 

branches;  preserved  an  unity  of  object  and  action  among 
them;  exercised  that  participation  in  the  suggestion  of 
affairs  which  his  office  made  incumbent  on  him,  and  met 
himself  the  due  responsibility  for  whatever  was  done. 
During  Mr.  Adams's  Administration  his  long  and  habit- 
ual absences  from  the  seat  of  government  rendered  this 
kind  of  communication  impracticable,  removed  him  from 
any  share  in  the  transaction  of  affairs  and  parcelled 
out  the  Government  in  fact  among  four  independent 
heads  drawing  sometimes  in  opposite  directions.  That 
the  former  is  preferable  to  the  latter  course  cannot  be 
doubted.  .  .  .  Whether  any  change  of  circumstances  may 
render  a  change  in  this  procedure  necessary  a  little 
experience  will  show  us.  But  I  cannot  withhold  recom- 
mending to  heads  of  departments  that  we  should  adopt 
this  course  for  the  present,  leaving  any  necessary  modi- 
fications of  it  to  time  and  trial."  * 

We  have  already  noted  that  President  Madison  as  a 
member  of  Congress  had  taken  an  active  part  in  the 
legislation  which  created  the  original  departments.  He 
was  among  the  first  to  realize  the  necessity  of  additional 
departments  and  to  recommend  their  creation.  In  his 
eighth  annual  message  to  Congress,  December  3,  1816, 
he  urged  upon  Congress  "the  expediency  of  a  remodifi- 
cation  of  the  judiciary  establishment  and  of  an  ad- 
ditional department  in  the  executive  branch  of  the 
Government."  Apparently  by  this  recommendation,  he 
placed  before  Congress  the  propriety  of  creating  a  De- 

1  Paul  Leicester  Ford,  Writings  of  Thomas  Jefferson,  vol.  vin, 
pp.  99-101. 


204  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

partment  of  Justice,  for,  he  said,  "the  course  of  experi- 
ence recommends,  as  another  improvement  in  the  execu- 
tive establishment,  that  the  provision  for  the  station  of 
Attorney-General,  whose  residence  at  the  seat  of  gov- 
ernment, official  connections  with  it,  and  the  manage- 
ment of  the  public  business  before  the  judiciary  preclude 
an  extensive  participation  in  professional  emoluments, 
be  made  more  adequate  to  his  services  and  his  relin- 
quishments, and  that  with  a  view  to  his  reasonable 
accommodation  and  to  a  proper  depository  of  his  offi- 
cial opinions  and  proceedings,  there  be  included  in  the 
provision  the  usual  appurtenances  to  a  public  office."  x 

Madison  was  a  Federalist  and  believed  in  a  strong 
Central  Government.  At  the  same  time  that  he  made 
the  above  recommendations,  he  made  the  first  formal 
recommendation  of  any  President  for  what  afterwards 
became  the  Department  of  the  Interior.  He  said  that 
"the  extent  and  variety  of  executive  business  also  ac- 
cumulating with  the  progress  of  our  country  and  its 
growing  population  call  for  an  additional  department, 
to  be  charged  with  duties  now  overburdening  other 
departments  and  with  such  as  have  not  been  annexed  to 
any  department."  2 

President  Monroe,  like  Washington,  Adams,  and 
Madison,  was  a  Federalist.  In  the  Revolution  he  had 
enlisted  as  a  private  soldier,  won  promotion  to  the  rank 
of  captain  of  infantry,  and  distinguished  himself  as 
aide  to  Lord  Sterling.   Before  his  election  as  President, 

1  Messages  and  Papers  of  the  Presidents,  vol.  I,  pp.  577-78. 

2  Ibid.,  vol.  I,  p.  577. 


THE  CHIEF  EXECUTIVES  205 

he  had  been  a  delegate  to  the  Continental  Congress, 
United  States  Senator  from  Virginia,  Governor  of  Vir- 
ginia, Envoy  Extraordinary  to  France,  and  Secretary 
of  State.  He  was  thoroughly  familiar  with  the  necessity 
which  led  to  the  formation  of  the  Union,  and  he  strongly 
advocated  strengthening  and  extending  the  power  of  the 
Federal  Executive.  In  his  first  annual  message,  Decem- 
ber 2, 1817,  he  called  attention  to  the  insufficiency  of  the 
accommodations  for  the  several  executive  departments 
and  urged  that  better  facilities  be  provided  the  heads  of 
the  departments  and  the  Attorney-General  for  the  con- 
duct of  their  business.  He  also  urged  the  improvement 
and  ornamentation  of  the  National  Capitol.1  He  was 
one  of  the  first  Presidents  to  suggest  departmental  super- 
vision of  the  mining  interests  which  are  to-day  taken  care 
of  by  the  Bureau  of  Mines  in  the  Interior  Department.2 
During  his  Administration  the  Post-Office  Department, 
although  not  yet  considered  one  of  the  executive  depart- 
ments equal  in  rank  with  the  Department  of  State,  had 
developed  enormously,  and  in  his  seventh  annual  mes- 
sage to  Congress,  December  2,  1823,  he  congratulated 
Congress  on  the  fact  that  there  were  5240  post-offices 
in  the  Union  and  as  many  postmasters,  and  that  the 
gross  amount  of  postage  sold  from  the  1st  of  July, 
1822,  to  the  1st  of  July,  1823,  was  $1,114,345.12 ;3  and 
again  in  his  eighth  annual  message,  December  2,  1824, 
he  advised  Congress  that  the  revenue  of  the  Post-Office 
Department  "has  received  a  considerable  augmenta- 

1  Messages  and  Papers  of  the  Presidents,  vol.  II,  p.  19. 

2  Ibid.,  vol.  II,  p.  190.  3  Ibid.,  vol.  n,  p.  215. 


206  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

tion  in  the  past  year,"  and  that  "the  current  receipts 
will  exceed  the  expenditures";  also,  "the  transportation 
of  the  mail  within  the  year  has  been  much  increased."  x 
In  all  of  his  messages  to  Congress  he  refers  to  the  Post- 
Office  Department  in  the  same  manner  as  he  refers  to 
the  other  executive  departments.  In  one  of  his  messages 
he  shows  his  joy  at  the  increase  in  power  and  strength 
of  the  Federal  Union.  "If,"  he  said,  "we  compare  the 
present  condition  of  our  Union  with  its  actual  state  at 
the  close  of  the  Revolution,  the  history  of  the  world  fur- 
nishes no  example  of  a  progress  in  improvement  in  all 
the  important  circumstances  which  constitute  the  hap- 
piness of  a  nation  which  bears  any  resemblance  to  it."  2 
John  Quincy  Adams  was  also  a  Federalist  and  he  made 
numerous  recommendations  to  Congress  for  the  exten- 
sion of  the  Federal  Executive.  In  his  first  annual  mes- 
sage, December  6,  1825,  he  called  the  attention  of 
Congress  to  the  recommendations  of  President  Madi- 
son, "the  citizen  who,"  he  said,  "perhaps  of  all  others 
throughout  the  Union,  contributed  most  to  the  forma- 
tion and  establishment  of  our  Constitution."  President 
Madison,  said  President  Adams,  "urgently  recom- 
mended the  revision  of  the  judiciary  and  the  estab- 
lishment of  an  additional  executive  department.  The 
exigencies  of  the  public  service  and  its  unavoidable  de- 
ficiencies, as  now  in  exercise,  have  added  yearly  cumu- 
lative weight  to  the  considerations  presented  by  him  as 
persuasive  to  the  measure,  and  in  recommending  it  to 

1  Messages  and  Papers  of  the  Presidents,  vol.  II,  p.  258. 

2  Ibid.,  vol.  II,  p.  219. 


THE  CHIEF  EXECUTIVES  207 

your  deliberations,  I  am  happy  to  have  the  influence  of 
his  high  authority  in  aid  of  the  undoubting  convictions 
of  my  own  experience."  He  also  recommended  the 
creation  of  a  Department  of  the  Interior.  His  father, 
as  President,  had  been  chiefly  responsible  for  the  De- 
partment of  the  Navy,  and  it  was  most  natural,  in  con- 
sidering the  Federal  Executive,  that  John  Quincy  Adams 
should  have  favored  more  executive  departments.  "  The 
naval  armaments,"  he  said,  "which  at  an  early  period 
forced  themselves  upon  the  necessities  of  the  Union, 
soon  led  to  the  establishment  of  a  Department  of  the 
Navy,  but  the  Departments  of  Foreign  Affairs  and  of 
the  Interior,  which,  early  after  the  formation  of  the 
Government,  had  been  united  in  one,  continue  so  united 
at  this  time,  to  the  unquestionable  detriment  of  the 
public  service.  The  multiplication  of  our  relations  with 
the  nations  and  governments  of  the  Old  World  has  kept 
pace  with  that  of  our  population  and  commerce,  while 
within  the  last  ten  years  a  new  family  of  nations  in  our 
own  hemisphere  has  arisen  among  the  inhabitants  of 
the  earth,  with  whom  our  intercourse,  commercial  and 
political,  would  of  itself  furnish  occupation  to  an  active 
and  industrious  department."  l  Although  John  Quincy 
Adams  was  a  Federalist  and  favored  a  strong  Central 
Government,  and  although  he  repeatedly  called  atten- 
tion to  the  flourishing  condition  of  the  Post-Office 
Department,  it  remained  for  his  successor,  who  had  little 
use  for  Cabinets  and  Cabinet  Ministers,  to  advance  the 
Postmaster-General  to  Cabinet  rank. 

1  Messages  and  Papers  of  the  Presidents,  vol.  n,  pp.  314-15. 


208  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

Andrew  Jackson  thoroughly  cleaned  out  the  whole 
federal  executive  administration  when  he  became  Presi- 
dent. He  came  into  power,  says  Sumner,  "as  the  stand- 
ard-bearer of  a  new  upheaval  of  Democracy  and  under  a 
provision  of  new  and  fuller  realization  of  the  Jeff ersonian 
Democratic  -  Republican  principles."1  His  adherents 
objected  to  the  term  "Cabinet"  and  Jackson  stripped 
the  heads  of  the  executive  departments  of  the  power  and 
dignity  they  had  gradually  acquired  and  made  of  them 
no  more  than  executive  clerks.  His  Cabinet  was  not 
particularly  strong;  his  Administration  lacked  unity 
and  discipline;  he  relied  for  his  advice  chiefly  upon  a 
group  of  men  who  finally  popularly  came  to  be  known 
as  the  "Kitchen  Cabinet."  I  have  already  called  atten- 
tion, in  one  of  the  early  chapters  of  this  book,  to  the 
reasons  which  led  Jackson  to  elevate  his  Postmaster- 
General,  William  T.  Barry,  to  equal  rank  with  the  heads 
of  the  executive  departments.  Previous  Presidents  had 
already  called  attention  to  the  enormously  increased 
functions  of  the  Post-Office  Department.  The  Post- 
master-General controlled  many  post-office  appoint- 
ments. Jackson  did  not  consider  the  possession  of  a  seat 
in  the  Cabinet  as  a  privilege  or  honor  of  any  very  great 
consideration,  but  he  did  consider  control  of  the  ap- 
pointments of  postmasters  for  political  purposes  a  most 
important  matter.  Postmaster-General  John  McLean, 
of  Ohio,  had  occupied  this  position  under  the  Adminis- 
tration of  John  Quincy  Adams,  without,  however,  being 
considered  a  member  of  the  Cabinet.   Jackson  offered 

1  William  Graham  Sumner,  Life  of  Andrew  Jackson,  p.  136. 


THE  CHIEF  EXECUTIVES  209 

to  retain  McLean  as  Postmaster-General  with  the  added 
dignity  of  a  Cabinet  place,  but  McLean  was  not  willing 
to  conduct  the  Post-Office  Department  as  Jackson  de- 
sired, and  therefore  accepted  a  position  on  the  bench 
of  the  Supreme  Court,  leaving  to  Postmaster-General 
Barry  the  newly  acquired  Cabinet  honors  and  the  dis- 
pensation of  the  political  patronage.  It  is  interesting 
to  note  that  Barry,  the  Postmaster-General,  was  the 
only  member  of  Jackson's  Cabinet  retained  in  his  second 
Administration.  Jackson  was  a  Democrat,  and  as  such 
was  supposed  to  be  opposed  to  any  increase  in  the  power 
of  the  Federal  Executive;  but  throughout  the  whole 
history  of  the  National  Administration,  strong  Presi- 
dents without  regard  to  party  beliefs  have  usually  fa- 
vored strengthening  the  executive  power.  Whatever 
may  have  been  Jackson's  published  beliefs,  he  recom- 
mended the  creation  of  additional  executive  depart- 
ments, and  he  raised  an  already  existing  department  to 
equal  rank  with  the  original  executive  departments. 
In  his  first  annual  message,  December  8,  1829,  he  re- 
ferred with  evident  satisfaction  to  the  increasing  power 
of  the  Post-Office  Department,  recommended  that  the 
Attorney-General  be  placed  on  the  same  footing  as  the 
heads  of  the  other  departments,  and  showed  that  he 
favored  the  creation  of  a  Home  Department  or  Depart- 
ment of  the  Interior,  although  he  did  not  find  it  advis- 
able at  that  time  to  urge  its  creation  upon  a  Democratic 
Congress.  As  to  the  Post-Office  Department,  President 
Jackson  advised  Congress  that  the  report  of  the  Post- 
master-General showed  a  highly  satisfactory  adminis- 


210  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

tration  of  that  department,  and  added  that  the  depart- 
ment "is  to  the  body  politic  what  the  veins  and  arteries 
are  to  the  natural  —  conveying  rapidly  and  regularly 
to  the  remotest  parts  of  the  system  correct  information 
of  the  operations  of  the  Government  and  bringing  back 
to  it  the  wishes  and  feelings  of  the  people.  Through  its 
agency,  we  have  secured  to  ourselves  the  full  enjoyment 
of  the  blessings  of  a  free  press."  1  As  to  the  Attorney- 
General  he  said,  "I  would  recommend,  therefore,  that 
the  duties  now  assigned  to  the  agent  of  the  Treasury, 
so  far  as  they  relate  to  the  superintendence  and  man- 
agement of  legal  proceedings  on  the  part  of  the  United 
States,  be  transferred  to  the  Attorney-General  and  that 
this  officer  be  placed  on  the  same  footing  in  all  respects 
as  the  heads  of  the  other  departments,  receiving  like 
compensation  and  having  such  subordinate  officers  pro- 
vided for  his  department  as  may  be  requisite  for  the 
discharge  of  these  additional  duties."  2  President  Jack- 
son again  repeated  his  very  wise  recommendation  as  to 
the  Attorney-General  in  his  second  annual  message  to 
Congress  December  6,  1830;  but  it  was  not  until  the 
Administration  of  General  Grant  in  1870  that  the  Con- 
gress heeded  the  recommendation  for  the  creation  of  the 
Department  of  Justice.  Concerning  the  Home  or  In- 
terior Department,  President  Jackson  called  the  atten- 
tion of  Congress  to  the  great  increase  of  business  in  the 
Department  of  State.  He  recalled  to  Congress  Presi- 
dent Madison's  recommendation  for  the  creation  of  a 

1  Messages  and  Papers  of  the  Presidents,  vol.  II,  p.  460. 

2  Ibid.,  vol.  II,  p.  453. 


THE  CHIEF  EXECUTIVES  211 

Department  of  the  Interior,  and  stated  that  this  recom- 
mendation had  been  repeated  by  both  of  President 
Madison's  successors,  and  added,  "my  comparatively 
limited  experience  has  satisfied  me  of  its  justness."  He 
was  unquestionably  in  favor  of  the  creation  of  a  De- 
partment of  the  Interior  and  so  stated  to  Congress,  but 
apparently  he  did  not  care  to  urge  unduly  upon  them  the 
establishing  of  this  department.  His  reasons  for  not 
asking  for  the  establishment  of  the  department  at  that 
time  are  interesting.  The  remedy  proposed  for  the  over- 
taxed condition  of  the  Department  of  State,  said  Presi- 
dent Jackson,  "was  the  establishment  of  a  Home  De- 
partment, a  measure  which  does  not  appear  to  have 
met  the  views  of  Congress  on  account  of  its  supposed 
tendency  to  increase  gradually  and  imperceptibly  the 
already  too  strong  bias  of  the  federal  system  towards 
the  exercise  of  authority  not  delegated  to  it.  I  am  not, 
therefore,  disposed  to  revive  the  recommendation,  but 
am  not  the  less  impressed  with  the  importance  of  so 
organizing  that  department  [State]  that  its  Secretary 
may  devote  more  of  his  time  to  our  foreign  relations. 
Clearly  satisfied  that  the  public  good  would  be  pro- 
moted by  some  suitable  provision  on  the  subject,  I 
respectfully  invite  your  attention  to  it."  x  Whatever 
may  have  been  President  Jackson's  supposed  attitude 
toward  the  expansion  of  the  Federal  Government,  his 
recommendations  to  Congress,  from  the  point  of  view 
of  the  Federalists,  were  entirely  satisfactory,  and  as  I 
have  before  pointed  out,  strong  Presidents  have  contrib- 
1  Messages  and  Papers  of  the  Presidents,  vol.  n,  pp.  461-62. 


212  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

uted  to  the  extension  of  the  Federal  Executive,  irrespec- 
tive of  party. 

At  the  close  of  President  Jackson's  Administration, 
the  Departments  of  State,  War,  the  Treasury,  and  the 
Navy  had  been  created.  The  Post-Office  Department 
had  been  raised  to  equal  rank  with  the  other,  depart- 
ments. The  creation  of  the  Department  of  the  Interior 
and  the  Department  of  Justice  had  been  strongly 
recommended.  President  Polk,  in  his  first  annual  mes- 
sage, December  2,  1845,  recommended  a  general  re- 
organization of  the  several  executive  departments  and  a 
redistribution  of  their  duties,  which  seemed  to  him  to 
be  incongruous.  He  also  strongly  recommended  that 
the  Attorney-General  be  placed  on  the  same  footing 
with  the  heads  of  the  other  executive  departments.1 

In  his  second  annual  message,  President  Hayes 
called  the  attention  of  Congress,  as  Washington  and 
many  of  his  successors  had  already  done,  to  the  fact 
that  the  preponderance  of  the  agricultural  over  any 
other  interests  in  the  United  States  entitled  it  to  all  the 
consideration  claimed  for  it  by  President  Washington, 
and  in  his  third  annual  message,  December  1,  1879, 
renewed  his  recommendation  in  favor  of  enlarging  the 
facilities  of  the  Department  of  Agriculture  and  asked 
that  Congress  place  the  department  "upon  a  footing 
which  will  enable  it  to  prosecute  more  effectively  the 
objects  for  which  it  is  established."  2  The  department 
at  that  time  was  merely  an  independent  division  not 

1  Messages  and  Papers  of  the  Presidents,  vol.  IV,  pp.  414-15. 

2  Ibid.,  vol.  VII,  pp.  505  and  579. 


THE  CHIEF  EXECUTIVES  213 

under  the  head  of  any  executive  department,  and  it 
was  not  until  the  Administration  of  President  Cleve- 
land that  it  was  raised  to  executive  rank.  In  his  first 
annual  message,  December  8,  1885,  and  again  in  1886, 
President  Cleveland  called  the  attention  of  Congress 
to  the  executive  needs  of  agriculture.1  February  9, 
1889,  the  department  was  created  as  an  executive  de- 
partment. 

President  Adams  repeatedly  called  attention  to  the 
necessity  of  fostering  the  commerce  of  the  nation.2 
President  Grant  in  1870  urged  upon  Congress  atten- 
tion to  the  depressed  condition  of  American  commerce,3 
and  President  Arthur  advised  the  legislative  body  that 
"the  continuing  decline  of  the  merchant  marine  of  the 
United  States  is  to  be  greatly  deplored,"  4  and  later  he 
urged  the  appointment  of  a  commission  for  the  investi- 
gation and  betterment  of  our  commercial  conditions.5 
President  Harrison  in  his  first  annual  message,  Decem- 
ber 3,  1889,  urged  Congress  to  deal  with  the  humiliat- 
ing question  of  the  inferiority  of  our  merchant  marine.6 
The  Fifty-seventh  Congress  finally  created  the  De- 
partment of  Commerce  and  Labor,  upon  the  recom- 
mendation of  President  Roosevelt  that  "there  should 
be  created  a  Cabinet  officer  to  be  known  as  Secretary 
of  Commerce  and  Industries  as  provided  in  the  bill 
introduced  at  the  last  session  of  Congress.  It  should 
be  his  province  to  deal  with  commerce  in  its  broadest 

1  Messages  and  Papers  of  the  Presidents,  vol.  vm,  pp.  362  and 
527.       2  Ibid.,  vol.  I,  pp.  251  and  256.        3  Ibid.,  vol.  VII,  p.  106. 
4  Ibid.,  vol.  vm,  p.  63.  6  Ibid.,  vol.  VIII,  p.  244. 

6  Ibid.,  vol.  IX,  p.  56. 


214  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

sense,  including  among  many  other  things  whatever 
concerns  labor  and  all  matters  affecting  the  great  busi- 
ness corporations  and  our  merchant  marine."  1  The 
most  recent  department,  the  Department  of  Labor, 
has  been  discussed  from  time  to  time  during  various 
Administrations.  Under  the  present  Administration  of 
President  Wilson,  the  old  Department  of  Commerce 
and  Labor  has  been  divided  and  the  labor  interests  of 
the  country,  the  importance  of  which  have  been  rec- 
ognized by  almost  every  President  since  Washington, 
have  their  own  special  representative  in  the  Presi- 
dent's Cabinet. 

1  Addresses  and  Presidential  Messages  of  President  Roosevelt, 
p.  298. 


CHAPTER  XII 

PROBABLE  DEVELOPMENTS  IN  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

In  the  first  chapter  of  these  studies,  we  took  a  gen- 
eral survey  of  the  Federal  Government.  We  then  ex- 
amined the  creation  of  the  executive  departments  and 
the  Cabinet  and  followed  through  successive  phases 
the  development  of  the  various  departments  and  the 
Federal  Executive  as  a  whole.  We  have  considered 
the  status  of  the  heads  of  the  executive  departments 
collectively  as  the  Cabinet,  and  individually  as  con- 
stitutional officers  of  the  Government  in  charge  of 
various  arms  of  the  Executive.  We  have  also  consid- 
ered the  present  organization  of  the  departments  and 
have  attempted  to  give  accounts  of  their  functions  suffi- 
ciently particular  to  convey  a  fairly  specific  idea  of  the 
multiplex  and  important  matters  with  which  the  Fed- 
eral Executive  deals.  In  the  preceding  chapter,  enough 
has  been  said  concerning  the  men  who  have  headed 
the  Federal  Executive  since  the  Union  was  instituted 
to  give  some  idea  of  the  part  various  Presidents  have 
played  in  the  development  of  the  Federal  Executive. 
In  this  concluding  chapter,  we  shall  try  to  forecast 
some  of  the  developments  which  may  take  place  in  it. 
There  are  three  elements  to  be  taken  into  consideration 
in  such  an  examination  —  the  President  as  Chief  Ex- 
ecutive, the  heads  of  the  executive  departments  collec- 
tively as  the  Cabinet,  and  the  executive  departments 


216  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

themselves  as  integral  parts  of  the  Federal  Executive. 
The  powers  of  the  President  and  the  status  of  the 
Cabinet,  we  have  considered  from  time  to  time,  and 
there  is  small  ground  for  any  belief  that  there  will,  in 
the  near  future,  occur  any  essential  changes  in  the 
powers  and  relations  of  the  President  or  the  members 
of  his  Cabinet.  The  President  to-day,  as  the  Chief  Ex- 
ecutive, occupies  the  same  place  in  the  Federal  Govern- 
ment as  he  did  when  Washington  was  first  inaugurated. 
The  Chief  Executive  of  a  nation  with  over  101,208,315 
population  necessarily  has  greater  power  and  a  much 
wider  and  more  diversified  power  than  the  Chief  Magis- 
trate of  a  newly  formed  Union  with  a  population  of  about 
4,000,000.  When  the  Constitution  was  put  into  effect 
the  federal  idea  was  very  weak.  We  have  seen  how  jeal- 
ous were  the  representatives  of  the  individual  States  of 
the  new  central  power.  To-day  the  national  concept  is  a 
vital  part  of  the  consciousness  of  the  American  people, 
and  especially  since  the  Spanish-American  War  by  the 
policies  of  both  great  national  political  parties  the 
Federal  Government  has  grown  enormously  in  power. 
The  federalization  of  the  National  Guard  of  the  vari- 
ous States,  the  assumption  of  an  ever-increasing  control 
by  the  Central  Government  over  interstate  business, 
the  creation  of  the  Department  of  Labor,  are  only 
three  of  the  indications  of  the  present  tendency  to  add 
to  the  functions  of  the  Federal  Government.  The  old 
cry  of  "States'  rights"  may  occasionally  be  raised  as  a 
political  slogan,  but  the  ancient  jealousy  of  the  Union 
no  longer  plays  an  important  part  in  the  promulgation 


PROBABLE  DEVELOPMENTS  217 

of  political  policies.  The  President  of  the  United  States 
will  probably  become  in  the  future  a  more  powerful 
individual  as  the  Federal  Government  acquires  a  more 
commanding  place  in  the  national  life,  but  the  Presi- 
dent himself  will  continue  to  occupy  the  position  he  has 
occupied  since  the  beginning,  and  his  influence,  as  in  the 
past,  will  depend  largely  on  the  strength  or  weakness 
of  his  own  personality. 

We  have  noted  that  the  Cabinet  in  the  beginning  was 
not  as  such  provided  for  by  the  organic  law  of  the 
Union.  It  remains  to-day  an  unofficial  body  of  presi- 
dential advisers,  whose  only  legal  status  arises  from 
their  being  heads  of  executive  departments  and  as  such 
constitutional  officers  of  the  United  States.  There  is 
more  formality  to-day  than  formerly  in  the  meetings 
of  the  Cabinet,  but  the  actions  of  the  Cabinet  still 
remain  merely  advisory  to  the  President.  There  seems 
to  be  no  reason  to  believe  that  any  change  will  occur 
in  this  particular.  We  have  discussed  the  possibility 
of  seats  being  provided  in  Congress  for  the  members 
of  the  Cabinet,  but  this  question  has  never  been  seri- 
ously agitated,  nor  is  there  any  reason  to  believe  that  it 
will  become  a  vital  question  in  the  near  future.  The 
influence  upon  the  Administration  of  the  individual 
members  of  the  Cabinet,  as  in  the  past,  will  depend 
upon  their  personal  relation  to  the  President  and  their 
political  and  personal  strength.  In  Washington's  first 
Cabinet  existed  what  would  now  be  an  anomalous 
condition.  Jefferson,  while  a  member  of  Washington's 
Cabinet,  was  actively  opposed  to  the  political  theories 


218  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

of  the  President,  and  while  a  member  of  the  Cabinet 
openly  and  without  any  marked  disapprobation  of 
Washington  formed  the  party  whose  underlying  prin- 
ciples were  opposed  to  those  of  the  Federalists  with 
whom  the  first  President  was  in  entire  accord.  At  the 
present  time  no  such  condition  could  exist  for  any 
length  of  time,  for  to-day  it  is  expected  that  the  mem- 
bers of  the  Federal  Executive  shall  be  in  accord  with 
their  chief  and  with  the  principles  of  the  party  whom 
he  represents.  There  are  at  present  ten  executive  de- 
partments and  ten  members  of  the  Cabinet.  Undoubt- 
edly there  will,  in  the  future,  be  additional  departments 
and  additional  members  of  the  Cabinet,  but  it  is  to  be 
hoped  that  the  increase  in  the  number  of  these  execu- 
tive officers  will  not  be  so  great  as  to  deprive  the  Cabi- 
net of  its  effectiveness  as  a  small,  coherent  advisory 
council.  The  greatest  probable  development  in  the 
Federal  Executive  is  to  be  looked  for  in  the  creation  of 
further  departments.  The  greatest  need  in  the  Federal 
Executive  is  a  reorganization  and  coordination  of  the 
functions  of  these  various  departments. 

At  the  present  time  the  Interstate  Commerce  Com- 
mission and  the  new  Federal  Trade  Commission  are 
both  in  the  position  of  the  Department  of  Labor  before 
it  came  under  the  jurisdiction  of  the  Department  of 
Commerce  and  Labor  prior  to  its  erection  into  an  in- 
dependent department,  and  it  is  probable  that  the 
duties  performed  by  these  two  bodies  will  in  time  be 
brought  under  the  direct  supervision  of  an  executive 
department.  The  Bureau  of  Education  in  the  Interior 


PROBABLE  DEVELOPMENTS  219 

Department  and  the  Civil-Service  Commission  may- 
some  day  become  the  nucleus  for  a  new  executive  De- 
partment of  Education.  There  was  once  a  Department 
of  Railroads  in  the  Interior  Department,  but  this  de- 
partment ceased  to  exist  when  the  Government's  parti- 
cipation in  the  construction  of  the  great  transcontinen- 
tal lines  came  to  an  end.  The  question  of  government 
control  of  railroads  is  one  of  the  important  questions 
to-day  open  for  consideration.  The  possible  acquisition 
and  management  by  the  Government  of  the  telephone 
and  telegraph  lines  of  the  country  has  also  received  con- 
siderable attention  in  recent  years.  The  Department 
of  Commerce,  as  now  constituted,  deals  chiefly  with 
foreign  commerce,  and  it  would  seem  to  be  likely  that 
we  may  have,  in  the  future,  one  or  more  departments 
dealing  with  railroads,  telegraphs,  telephones,  and 
domestic  interstate  trade.  Let  us  consider  first  the 
possibility  of  an  executive  Department  of  Education. 

I  have  already  pointed  out  that  among  the  Cabinet 
officers  of  the  future  will  probably  be  a  Secretary  of 
Education.  At  present  there  is  in  the  Department  of 
the  Interior  the  Bureau  of  Education.  By  the  Act  of 
March  2,  1866, l  a  Department  of  Education  was  estab- 
lished for  the  purpose  of  collecting  and  diffusing  such 
information  relative  to  schools  as  would  aid  the  people 
of  the  United  States  in  the  establishment  and  main- 
tenance of  efficient  school  systems  and  otherwise  pro- 
mote the  cause  of  education  throughout  the  country. 
This  department  was  not  intended  to  be  an  executive 
1  14  U.S.  Stat.  L.  434. 


220  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

department  of  equal  rank  with  those  already  created, 
but  it  was  not  attached  to  any  existing  executive  de- 
partment nor  was  its  head  under  the  direct  authority  of 
any  Cabinet  officer.  A  Commissioner  of  Education  as 
head  of  this  department  was  authorized,  just  as  later 
a  Commissioner  of  Labor  was  created.  The  latter  has 
become  head  of  the  executive  Department  of  Labor, 
but  the  Commissioner  of  Education  has  not  yet  become 
Secretary  of  Education.  By  the  Act  of  July  20,  1868, r 
the  name  of  the  Department  of  Education  was  changed 
to  the  Office  of  Education  and  was  placed  under  the 
direction  of  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior.  One  of  the 
greatest  needs  at  the  present  time  in  the  federal  service 
is  the  proper  training  of  efficient  civil  servants.  The 
Civil-Service  Commission  stands  for  efficiency  in  the 
civil  service  of  the  Government  based  upon  merit  rather 
than  upon  political  affiliations,  and  the  efficient  con- 
duct of  the  Federal  Executive  must  depend  upon  a 
realization  of  the  fact  that  certain  offices  require  expert 
service  and  technical  training.  It  would  seem  not  im- 
proper that  the  general  educational  interests  of  the 
nation  now  fostered  by  the  Bureau  of  Education  should 
be  combined  with  those  activities  of  the  Government 
which  have  in  view  proper  training  and  specialized  effi- 
ciency in  the  service  of  the  Government  itself.  An  ex- 
ecutive department  having  direction  both  of  general 
education  and  special  government  service  education 
would  assume  control  of  various  educational  functions 
performed  at  the  present  time  by  a  number  of  the  de- 
1  15  U.S.  Stat.  L.  106. 


PROBABLE  DEVELOPMENTS  221 

partments  and  might  be  a  very  valuable  addition  to  the 
Federal  Executive.  In  regard  to  the  possibility  and 
advisability  of  an  executive  Department  of  Education, 
it  will  not  be  improper  for  me  to  quote  the  opinion  of 
the  present  Commissioner  of  Education,  the  Honorable 
Philander  P.  Claxton,  whose  advice  upon  this  subject 
I  have  asked.  Commissioner  Claxton  states  that  the 
Bureau  of  Education  attempts  definitely  the  follow- 
ing things:  (1)  To  be  a  clearing-house  for  accurate  in- 
formation in  regard  to  all  phases  and  problems  of  edu- 
cation in  this  country  and  throughout  the  world.  (2) 
To  be  a  clearing-house  for  well-matured  opinion;  that 
is,  the  consensus  of  the  best  opinion  on  any  particular 
problem  of  education,  whether  administrative,  finan- 
cial, or  pedagogic.  (3)  To  be  a  source  of  sound  and 
reliable  advice  on  any  particular  subject  connected 
with  education  in  any  part  of  the  United  States.  (4) 
To  assist  school  officials  and  citizens  in  bringing  about 
better  educational  conditions  in  any  State  or  section 
of  the  country,  and  in  bringing  about  better  opportuni- 
ties for  education  for  all  the  people;  that  is,  to  con- 
duct its  own  campaigns  for  educational  betterment  and 
to  assist  in  campaigns  conducted  by  States  and  local 
communities  or  by  associations  interested  in  any  par- 
ticular form  of  education.  (5)  In  addition  to  the  above, 
it  is  trying  to  find  its  way  toward  working  out  a  definite 
body  of  scientific  knowledge  in  regard  to  education  in 
general  and  methods  of  teaching  in  particular,  to  do 
something  similar  to  what  has  been  done  by  the  De- 
partment of  Agriculture,  working  through  the  agricul- 


222  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

tural  experiment  stations,  in  the  several  States  for  the 
last  twenty-five  years.  As  to  the  advisability  of  a  sep- 
arate executive  Department  of  Education,  Mr.  Claxton 
feels  that  "just  whether  these  things  can  be  better  done 
through  a  separate  department  with  a  Cabinet  member 
at  its  head,  or  through  a  well-supported  bureau  in  the 
Department  of  the  Interior,  I  am  unable  to  say.  The 
separate  department  would  have  somewhat  more  in- 
dependence and  probably  more  influence  than  a  bu- 
reau. But,  on  the  other  hand,  a  department  with  a 
Cabinet  position  would  necessarily  be  more  closely  allied 
with  changing  partisan  politics.  No  doubt  there  will 
some  time  be  a  Department  of  Education.  This  will,  I 
think,  come  as  a  result  of  a  large  increase  in  the  support 
and  extension  of  the  functions  of  the  present  bureau." 
The  most  apparent  tendency  in  the  development  of 
the  departments  has  been  the  outgrowing  of  the  ancient 
restrictions  in  the  same  normal  manner  as  the  small 
boy  outgrows  his  knickerbockers:  the  Treasury  De- 
partment has  grown  bigger  as  the  national  purse  en- 
larged; the  Navy  Department  has  grown  bigger  as  the 
size  of  the  Union  increased,  and  so  it  is  with  most  of  the 
executive  departments.  An  interesting  feature,  how- 
ever, in  the  history  of  the  development  of  the  executive 
departments  is  that  to  which  I  have  already  called  atten- 
tion in  the  account  of  the  development  of  those  de- 
partments. The  same  tendencies  exist  to-day  that  have 
always  existed  for  unimportant  functions  of  certain 
departments  to  become  so  insistently  prominent  that 
they  cease  to  be  subordinate  matters  of  one  depart- 


PROBABLE  DEVELOPMENTS  223 

ment  and  are  recognized  by  the  creation  of  an  additional 
independent  branch  of  the  executive  power.  It  has 
already  been  suggested  that  the  Interstate  Commerce 
Commission  may  naturally  develop  into  a  department 
of  railroads,  whether  or  not  the  Federal  Government 
supervises  railroads  or  ultimately  owns  them.  The  Re- 
port of  the  Postmaster-General  for  the  year  1914  re- 
news a  suggestion  which  may  mean  eventually  a  new 
department  which  will  conduct  the  national  telegraphs 
and  telephones.  The  Postmaster-General  recommends 
a  consideration  by  Congress  of  extending  the  govern- 
ment monopoly  of  the  postal  service  to  the  transmission 
of  all  forms  of  intelligence,  such  as  the  telegraph  and 
the  telephone  systems  of  the  country.  While  this  sug- 
gestion is  made  as  an  increase  of  the  functions  of  the 
Post-Office  Department,  should  the  Government  ever 
so  extend  its  functions  these  vast  new  additions  of  a 
purely  business  nature  would  probably  be  handled  by 
a  new  executive  department.  The  heads  of  the  execu- 
tive departments  speak  only,  theoretically,  with  the 
voice  of  the  Chief  Executive,  and  therefore  we  are  per- 
mitted to  consider  the  recommendations  of  the  Post- 
master-General as  being  the  recommendations  of  the 
President.  The  President,  under  our  present  form  of 
party  government,  is  the  recognized  mouthpiece  of 
his  party,  and  we  may,  therefore,  in  considering  the 
tendencies  of  the  development  of  the  executive  de- 
partments, consider  the  recommendations  of  a  Post- 
master-General as  a  possible  plank  in  some  future  party 
platform.  It  is,  therefore,  of  interest  for  us  to  note 


224  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

what  the  present  Postmaster-General  considers  to  be  the 
opinion  of  all  the  Postmasters-General  of  the  United 
States  on  the  subject  of  the  extension  of  the  govern- 
ment monopoly  for  the  transmission  of  intelligence  to 
include  the  telegraphs  and  telephones.  "It  is  an  inter- 
esting fact,"  Postmaster-General  Burleson  reports  to 
Congress,  "that,  whereas  policies  of  Government  have 
been  advocated,  and  some  adopted,  the  constitutional- 
ity of  which  have  been  seriously  questioned,  the  prin- 
ciple of  government  ownership  and  control  of  the  tel- 
egraph and  telephone  finds  its  greatest  strength  in  the 
Constitution.  This  opinion  has  been  shared  by  prac- 
tically all  Postmasters-General  of  the  United  States, 
who  have  held  that  the  welfare  and  happiness  of  the 
nation  depend  upon  the  fullest  utilization  of  these 
agencies  by  the  people,  which  can  only  be  accomplished 
through  government  ownership."  l  The  English  Post- 
master-General has  been  given  exclusive  control  of  the 
telegraph  by  provisions  which  have  been  held  to  include 
the  telephone  also,  and  the  English  Government  has 
recently  decided  to  take  over  the  management  of  the 
telephones.2 

The  Interstate  Commerce  Commission  which  to-day 
has  charge  of  railroad  affairs  is  not  an  executive  de- 
partment. It  is,  however,  the  only  governmental 
agency  which,  at  the  present  time,  concerns  itself  with 
the  railroads  of  the  United  States.  Should,  however,  a 
Department  of  Railroads  be  eventually  created,  it  will 

1  Report  of  the  Postmaster-General,  1911*,  p.  13. 

2  Lowell,  The  Government  of  England,  vol.  I,  p.  114. 


PROBABLE  DEVELOPMENTS  225 

not  be  entirely  without  the  sanction  of  precedent.  The 
office  of  the  Auditor  of  Railroad  Accounts  was  created 
by  Act  of  June  19, 1878, l  which  provided  that  the  duties 
of  the  auditor,  under  direction  of  the  Secretary  of  the 
Interior,  should  be  to  devise  a  system  of  reports  of 
government-aided  railroads  west  of  the  Missouri 
River,  to  see  that  the  laws  relating  to  certain  questions 
were  enforced,  to  examine  the  company's  accounts  for 
government  transportation,  etc.  By  the  Act  of  March 
3,  1881,  the  title  of  Auditor  was  changed  to  Commis- 
sioner of  Railroads.  The  Act  of  March  3,  1893,  ^abol- 
ished the  office  of  Commissioner  of  Railroads  and  pro- 
vided that  the  records  and  files  of  this  office  should  be 
transferred  to  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior.  The  Act 
of  1878  was  passed  in  the  days  when  the  United  States 
was  participating  in  the  building  of  the  transconti- 
nental railroads,  and  we  have  already  seen  that  the 
Secretary  of  the  Interior  exercised  an  important  control 
over  such  roads  during  the  period  of  their  construction. 
Apparently,  the  Commissioner  of  Railroads  and  the 
Secretary  of  the  Interior's  control  of  railroads  existed 
until  1889,  when  the  Interstate  Commerce  Commis- 
sion became  independent.  By  the  Act  of  February  4, 
1887,3  entitled  "An  Act  to  regulate  commerce,"  by 
which  the  granting  of  rebates  was  prohibited  and  vari- 
ous other  restrictions  were  imposed  upon  railroads,  the 
Interstate  Commerce  Commission  was  created,  to  be 
appointed  by  the  President.    This  act  required  the 

>  20  U.S.  Stat.  L.  169.  »  32  U.S.  Stat.  L.  1119. 

3  24  U.S.  Stat.  L.  383. 


226  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

Commission  to  submit  an  annual  report  to  the  Secre- 
tary of  the  Interior,  and  also  authorized  him  to  pass 
upon  the  accounts  of  the  Commission  and  provide 
quarters  for  the  Commission.  He  also  was  required 
to  approve  the  appointment  of  the  employees  of  the 
Commission.  The  Secretary  of  the  Interior  seems  to 
have  found  these  duties  irksome,  for  in  his  annual  re- 
port for  the  fiscal  year  ending  June  30,  1887,  he  recom- 
mended that  the  supervisory  powers  conferred  upon 
him  with  respect  to  the  Interstate  Commerce  Com- 
mission be  revoked,  and  by  the  Act  of  March  2,  1889, x 
the  Interstate  Commerce  Act  was  amended  so  as  to 
require  the  Commission  to  submit  its  report  to  Congress 
direct,  and  to  withdraw  from  the  Secretary  the  power 
to  approve  appointments,  provide  quarters,  and  pass 
upon  accounts  of  the  Commission. 

When,  in  1903,  the  Department  of  Commerce  and 
Labor  was  created,  the  status  of  the  Interstate  Com- 
merce Commission  was  fully  considered,  and  whether 
or  not  it  should  be  brought  under  the  jurisdiction  of 
an  executive  department  was  discussed  at  length  in  the 
Senate.  The  debates  on  this  subject,  participated  in 
by  the  ablest  members  of  the  Senate,  show  the  existence 
of  a  strong  feeling  that  all  of  the  executive  agencies 
should  be  under  the  direct  supervision  of  a  member 
of  the  Cabinet.  In  reference  to  this  matter,  Senator 
Spooner  said:  "It  is  a  little  odd  to  have  independent 
and  unassimilated  bureaus  in  the  Government.  Prima 
facie  there  is  propriety  in  almost  every  case  in  having 
»  25  U.S.  Stat.  L.  861. 


PROBABLE  DEVELOPMENTS  227 

these  bureaus,  whatever  they  may  be,  or  these  sub- 
departments,  whatever  they  may  deal  with,  in  some 
executive  department,  presided  over  by  a  Cabinet  offi- 
cer, who  twice  a  week  or  every  day  visits  the  Chief 
Executive,  who  is  responsible  for  the  general  conduct 
of  the  Administration.  I  agree  with  the  Senator  from 
Virginia  [Mr.  Martin]  in  all  he  said,  and  especially  I 
agree  with  him  that  there  are  peculiar  reasons  why  the 
Interstate  Commerce  Commission  should  not  be  trans- 
ferred to  a  department.  The  Interstate  Commerce 
Commissioners  are  charged  with  the  administration  of  an 
Act  of  Congress.  It  is  part  of  their  function  to  investi- 
gate with  a  view  to  enforcing  the  requirements  of  the 
Interstate  Commerce  Law,  but  a  part,  and  a  very  im- 
portant part,  of  their  functions  are  quasi-judicial." 
At  this  stage  of  the  debate,  Senator  Hale,  of  Maine, 
remarked,  "Is  not  that  true  about  any  bureau  of  impor- 
tance in  any  department  of  the  Government?"  to  which 
Senator  Spooner  replied,  "I  do  not  think  it  is  true." 
Senator  Hale  then  replied,  "  The  Indian  Bureau  in  the 
Interior  Department  is  engaged  in  administering  the 
law.  There  is  not  a  day  in  the  great  Land  Office  of 
the  Interior  Department  when  questions  of  law  do  not 
come  up  which  involve  hundreds  of  thousands  and 
millions  of  dollars.  Indeed,  I  have  heard  it  said  that  the 
decisions  of  the  Commissioner  of  the  General  Land 
Office  yearly  involve  more  value  in  property  than  those 
of  any  court  which  exists  in  the  United  States.  The 
Interstate  Commerce  Commission  was  authorized  to 
do  nothing  more  than  that.  It  is  a  projected  body  into 


228  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

the  administration  of  the  Government.  They  have  no 
force  so  far  as  promulgating  decisions  which  are  recog- 
nized as  law.  Their  duties  are  purely  administrative, 
purely  with  regard  to  seeing  that  the  different  laws  in 
reference  to  railroad  transportation  and  interstate  com- 
merce are  carried  out.  Everything  about  it  could  be 
done  by  a  well-developed  and  well-conducted  bureau 
in  a  department  as  well  as  it  is  done  now."  Senator 
Spooner  replied  to  this  that  "  the  Interstate  Commerce 
Commissioners  are  rather  sui  generis.  Of  course  they 
are  'projected  into  the  administration,'  just  as  every 
other  bureau  that  has  ever  been  created  was  'pro- 
jected into  the  administration.'  "  Senator  Hoar,  of 
Massachusetts,  expressed  the  opinion  "that  the  Inter- 
state Commerce  Commission  is  practically  a  judicial 
body."1  Congress  excluded  the  Interstate  Commerce 
Commission  from  the  Department  of  Commerce  and 
Labor  because  of  the  judicial  functions  of  the  Commis- 
sion. As  I  have  pointed  out,  the  Department  of  Justice 
exercises  a  large  measure  of  control  over  the  adminis- 
tration of  the  federal  courts,  and  the  work  of  the  De- 
partment of  Justice  through  the  Attorney-General's 
office  and  the  offices  of  various  district  attorneys  is 
more  than  q^cm-judicial.  The  Attorney-General  in  the 
early  days  of  the  Federal  Executive  was  outside  the 
executive  departments,  and  it  was  not  until  1870  that 
the  Department  of  Justice  was  created.  It  would  seem 
that  cogent  reasons  exist  for  the  placing  of  the  Inter- 

1  Organization  and  Law  of  the  Department  of  Commerce  and  Labor 
(1904),  pp.  514-15. 


PROBABLE  DEVELOPMENTS  229 

state  Commerce  Commission  under  the  direct  super- 
vision of  a  Cabinet  officer,  and  the  purely  judicial  func- 
tions of  the  Commission  would  seem  to  offer  no  valid 
bar  to  such  supervision  of  the  Commission  by  an  execu- 
tive department. 

As  early  as  1864,  bills  were  introduced  in  Congress 
for  the  creation  of  an  executive  department  similar  to 
the  Department  of  Commerce  and  Labor.  February 
8, 1864,  in  the  first  session  of  the  Thirty-eighth  Congress, 
a  bill  was  introduced  to  create  and  organize  a  Depart- 
ment of  Industry,  and  in  1874,  in  the  Forty-third  Con- 
gress, a  bill  was  introduced  to  create  a  Department  of 
Commerce.  The  organization  of  such  an  executive  de- 
partment was  repeatedly  considered  by  Congress  until 
1903,  when  the  Department  of  Commerce  and  Labor 
was  finally  erected.  The  original  bill  which  resulted  in 
the  creation  of  the  Department  of  Commerce  and  Labor 
provided  for  a  department  to  be  called  the  Department 
of  Commerce.  It  provided  that  the  existing  Depart- 
ment of  Labor,  which  was  not  at  that  time  an  executive 
department  and  which  was  independent  of  any  execu- 
tive department,  should  be  placed  under  the  jurisdic- 
tion of  the  Secretary  of  Commerce.  In  the  debates  in 
Congress  it  was  noted  that  the  Department  of  Labor 
was  technically  really  an  independent  bureau,  and  that 
it  occupied  the  same  position  as  the  Department  of 
Agriculture  when  it  was  presided  over  by  a  Commis- 
sioner of  Agriculture.  The  claims  of  American  labor 
were,  however,  at  that  time  recognized  by  adding  to 
the  name  of  the  department,  which  finally  emerged  from 


230  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

Congress  as  the  Department  of  Commerce  and  Labor. 
We  have  already  seen  that  in  1913,  the  original  inde- 
pendent non-executive  Department  of  Labor  became  a 
full-fledged  executive  department. 

The  original  bill  for  the  creation  of  the  Department 
of  Commerce  contained  a  reference  to  the  Commissioner 
of  Railroads.  It  was  pointed  out  that  this  office  had 
been  abolished  by  an  Act  of  Congress  which  had  taken 
effect  on  the  previous  30th  of  June,  and  the  original  bill 
providing  for  the  transfer  of  the  office  of  Commissioner 
of  Railroads  to  the  proposed  new  department  was 
thereupon  amended  so  as  to  strike  out  all  reference  to 
the  Commissioner  of  Railroads.  In  the  debate  on  this 
subject  attention  was  called  to  the  fact  that  this  office 
had  become  obsolete,  "now  that  the  entanglements 
of  the  Government  with  the  Pacific  Railroads  had  been 
eliminated."  In  1874,  in  the  Forty-third  Congress,  a 
bill  was  introduced  !  to  establish  a  Bureau  of  Trans- 
portation to  regulate  the  management  of  Interstate 
Commerce.  The  old  office  of  the  Commissioner  of  Rail- 
roads has  ceased  to  exist.  The  Interstate  Commerce 
Commission  to-day  is  the  only  arm  of  the  Government 
definitely  dealing  with  the  regulation  of  railroads.  The 
Post-Office  Department,  by  reason  of  the  enormous 
amount  of  matter  it  transports  by  rail,  has  important 
dealings  with  the  railroads,  and  from  time  to  time  new 
questions  concerning  railroad  regulation  in  its  relation 
to  the  Federal  Government  arise  for  consideration. 

The  commercial  interests  of  the  United  States  clam- 
1  H.R.  1094. 


PROBABLE  DEVELOPMENTS  231 

ored  for  executive  representation  for  many  years  before 
the  Department  of  Commerce  was  created.  The  labor 
interests  of  the  United  States  sought  executive  recogni- 
tion for  many  years  before  the  Department  of  Labor 
was  created,  and  to-day  the  railroads  themselves  are 
asking  for  the  addition  to  the  executive  departments 
of  a  Department  of  Transportation.  In  reference  to  this 
I  cannot  do  better  than  to  quote  from  an  address  made 
by  Mr.  Howard  Elliott,  Chairman  of  the  Board  of 
Directors  and  President  of  the  New  York,  New  Haven, 
and  Hartford  Railway  Company,  delivered  April  8, 
1915,  at  Norwich,  Connecticut,  in  which  he  said:  "To- 
day the  Government  recognizes  some  of  the  great  com- 
mercial activities  of  its  population  by  departments  and 
Cabinet  officers,  such  as  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury, 
Secretary  of  Agriculture,  Secretary  of  Commerce,  and 
Secretary  of  Labor.  The  transportation  business  of 
the  United  States  is  next  to  agriculture  in  importance, 
in  volume,  and  in  its  relation  to  the  welfare  of  the  whole 
country,  and  it  should  have  a  defender  in  the  councils 
of  the  Cabinet.  I  believe  it  would  be  well  to  have  a 
Department  of  Transportation,  with  a  Secretary  of 
Transportation  at  the  head  of  it,  who  would  be  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Cabinet.  Such  a  man  would  of  necessity  have 
to  champion  somewhat  the  rights  and  privileges  of  the 
transportation  business,  just  as  the  Secretaries  of  the 
Treasury,  Commerce,  and  Labor  speak  for  their  par- 
ticular subjects.  Such  an  officer  would  have  a  whole- 
some balancing  effect  between  the  demands  of  the  pub- 
lic and  of  the  regulatory  organizations  on  one  side,  and 


232  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

any  errors  of  policy  and  management  on  the  part  of 
the  owners  of  the  property  on  the  other  side." 

The  Act  of  Congress  of  September  26,  1914,  provid- 
ing for  a  Federal  Trade  Commission,  transferred  to  this 
Commission  the  work  formerly  done  by  the  Bureau  of 
Corporations  of  the  Department  of  Commerce.  The 
creation  of  this  Bureau  of  Corporations  was  considered 
one  of  the  most  important  matters  in  connection  with 
the  Department  of  Commerce  and  Labor.  President 
Roosevelt,  in  his  message  to  the  two  houses  of  Con- 
gress at  the  beginning  of  the  second  session  of  the  Fifty- 
eighth  Congress,  said:  "The  Congress  has  created  the 
Department  of  Commerce  and  Labor  including  the 
Bureau  of  Corporations  with,  for  the  first  time,  au- 
thority to  secure  proper  publicity  of  such  proceedings 
of  the  great  corporations  as  the  public  has  the  right  to 
know.  .  .  .  The  preliminary  work  of  the  Bureau  of  Cor- 
porations in  the  Department  has  shown  the  wisdom  of 
its  creation.  Publicity  in  corporate  affairs  will  tend 
to  do  away  with  ignorance  and  will  afford  facts  upon 
which  intelligent  action  may  be  taken."  1  By  the 
merger  of  the  Bureau  of  Corporations  in  the  Federal 
Trade  Commission,  the  work  in  reference  to  "big  busi- 
ness," which  was  intended  to  be  done  by  the  Depart- 
ment of  Commerce  and  Labor,  has  been  placed  under 
the  jurisdiction  of  a  Commission  which  is  not  under 
the  supervision  of  any  one  of  the  members  of  the  Cabi- 
net.  The  old  Bureau  of  Corporations  investigated  the 

1  Addresses  and  Presidential  Messages  of  President  Roosevelt, 
pp.  380-81. 


PROBABLE  DEVELOPMENTS  233 

legal  and  economic  problems  relating  to  proposed  legis- 
lation concerning  interstate  trade.  It  also  investigated 
the  efficiency  of  trusts  from  the  standpoint  of  business 
profits  and  from  other  standpoints  of  social  welfare. 
The  Federal  Trade  Commission  Act l  was  approved 
by  the  President  September  26,  1914,  and  is  now  being 
put  into  force.  It  provides  for  a  Federal  Trade  Com- 
mission consisting  of  five  commissioners,  each  of  whom, 
when  the  organization  is  complete,  will  be  appointed 
for  a  term  of  seven  years  and  receive  a  salary  of  ten 
thousand  dollars.  The  act  provides  that  the  Commis- 
sion is  to  choose  from  its  own  members  its  chairman, 
and  that  the  commissioners  shall  not  engage  in  any 
other  business,  vocation,  or  employment.  Upon  the 
organization  of  the  Commission  and  the  election  of  its 
chairman,  the  Bureau  of  Corporations  and  the  Office  of 
Commissioner  and  Deputy  Commissioner  of  Corpora- 
tions, formerly  under  the  jurisdiction  of  the  Secretary 
of  Commerce,  cease  to  exist  and  all  pending  investiga- 
tions and  proceedings  of  the  Bureau  of  Corporations 
are  to  be  continued  by  the  Commission.  The  act  is 
very  broad  in  its  scope.  It  declares  that  unfair  meth- 
ods of  competition  in  commerce  are  unlawful,  and 
that  the  Commission  is  empowered  and  directed  to 
prevent  persons,  partnerships,  or  corporations,  except 
banks  and  common  carriers  subject  to  the  acts  to  reg- 
ulate commerce,  from  using  unfair  methods  of  com- 
petition in  commerce.  The  Commission  is  empowered 
to  gather  and  compile  information  concerning,  and  to 
*  U.S.  Stat.  L.,  1913-14,  p.  717. 


234  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

investigate  from  time  to  time,  the  organization,  busi- 
ness, conduct,  practices,  and  management  of  any  cor- 
poration engaged  in  commerce,  excepting  banks  and 
common  carriers  subject  to  the  act  to  regulate  com- 
merce, and  its  relation  to  other  corporations  and  indi- 
viduals, associations,  and  partnerships.  It  also  has  the 
power  to  require  from  corporations  engaged  in  commerce, 
excepting  banks  and  common  carriers  subject  to  the 
act  to  regulate  commerce,  to  file  with  the  Commission 
annual  or  special  reports,  or  answer  in  writing  specific 
questions  as  to  the  organization,  business,  conduct, 
practices,  management,  and  relation  to  other  corpora- 
tions, partnerships,  and  individuals.  Whenever  a  final 
decree  has  been  entered  against  any  corporation  under 
the  Anti-Trust  Acts,  the  Federal  Trade  Commission 
is  empowered  to  ascertain  whether  such  decree  is  being 
carried  out.  It  may  institute  such  an  investigation 
upon  its  own  initiative  or  upon  application  of  the  At- 
torney-General. The  President  or  either  house  of  Con- 
gress may  direct  the  Commission  to  investigate  and 
report  the  facts  relating  to  any  alleged  violations  of  the 
Anti-Trust  Acts.  The  Commission  may  also,  upon  the 
application  of  the  Attorney-General,  investigate  and 
make  recommendations  for  the  readjustment  of  the 
business  of  any  corporation  alleged  to  be  violating  the 
Anti-Trust  Acts  in  order  that  the  corporation  may 
thereafter  maintain  its  organization,  management,  and 
conduct  of  business  in  accordance  with  law.  The  Com- 
mission may  also  make  annual  and  special  reports  to 
Congress  containing  recommendations  for  additional 


PROBABLE  DEVELOPMENTS  235 

legislation,  and  it  may  investigate  any  combinations 
or  practice  of  manufacturers,  merchants,  or  traders 
that  may  affect  the  foreign  trade  of  the  United  States. 
There  is  also  a  very  interesting  provision  in  the  act 
that  in  any  suit  in  equity  brought  by  or  under  the  direc- 
tion of  the  Attorney-General,  as  provided  in  the  Anti- 
Trust  Acts,  the  court  may  refer  the  testimony  in  the 
case  to  the  Federal  Trade  Commission,  which  is  em- 
powered to  act  as  a  master  in  chancery  to  ascertain 
and  report  to  the  court  an  appropriate  form  of  decree 
to  be  passed  in  the  pending  suit.  The  Federal  Trade 
Commission,  as  I  have  pointed  out,  is  not  subject  to  the 
jurisdiction  of  any  existing  executive  department,  but 
the  several  departments  and  bureaus  of  the  Govern- 
ment, when  directed  by  the  President,  are  required  to 
furnish  the  Commission  any  records,  papers,  and  in- 
formation in  their  possession  relating  to  any  corpora- 
tion subject  to  any  of  the  provisions  of  the  act,  and,  if 
requested,  shall  detail  from  time  to  time  such  officials 
and  employees  to  assist  the  Commission  as  the  Presi- 
dent may  direct.  The  Commission  is  endowed  with 
power  to  compel  the  attendance  of  witnesses  and  to 
enforce  its  findings  through  the  courts  of  the  United 
States.  Penalties  are  provided  for  failure  by  any  cor- 
poration to  file  the  reports  required  by  the  Commis- 
sion. From  this  summary  of  the  functions  of  the  Com- 
mission, it  will  be  seen  that  it  possesses  far-reaching 
and  very  important  powers.  What  it  can  do  and  what 
it  may  not  attempt  will  doubtless  be  the  subject  of 
much  litigation  in  the  courts  of  the  United  States.  The 


236  THE  FEDERAL  EXECUTIVE 

problem  of  the  relation  of  the  Federal  Government  to 
the  large  business  interests  of  the  country  is  one  of  the 
most  important  questions  at  present  unsolved.  For  the 
purposes  of  this  consideration,  the  Federal  Trade  Com- 
mission is  interesting  chiefly  because  it  adds  very  great 
additional  powers  to  the  Federal  Executive,  and  be- 
cause, like  the  Interstate  Commerce  Commission,  it  is 
an  arm  of  the  Federal  Executive  which  at  the  present 
time  is  not  under  the  direct  supervision  of  any  of  the 
heads  of  the  ten  existing  executive  departments. 

A  Department  of  Education,  a  Department  of  Trans- 
portation, and  a  Department  of  Interstate  Trade  are 
possibilities  for  future  executive  departments.  It  may 
be  that  three  independent  departments  may  come 
within  the  next  few  years;  it  may  be  that  the  regulation 
of  transportation,  regulation  of  interstate  business,  and 
the  regulation  of  telephone  and  telegraph  facilities  may 
all  be  combined  in  one  executive  department,  which 
might  well  bear  the  name  of  the  Department  of  Domes- 
tic Commerce.  I  do  not  think  it  advisable,  however, 
that  the  number  of  members  of  the  Cabinet  be  greatly 
increased,  and  it  may  be  that  a  general  reorganization 
of  all  the  executive  departments  will  take  place  in  order 
to  provide  for  those  matters  which  are  now  outside  of 
the  supervision  of  the  members  of  the  Cabinet.  In  any 
such  reorganization  of  the  federal  executive  depart- 
ments, it  will  be  well  to  bear  in  mind  the  criticism  of 
Senator  Hale,  of  Maine,  at  the  time  when  the  Depart- 
ment of  Commerce  and  Labor  was  created.  "The  bill," 
said  Senator  Hale,  "is  called  a  bill  to  establish  the 


PROBABLE  DEVELOPMENTS  237 

Department  of  Commerce,  and  the  subject-matters  that 
are  in  it  have  not  so  much  relation  to  commerce  as  light 
has  to  darkness.  Why  should  the  Census  Bureau  —  a 
bureau  made  of  internal  consequence,  internal  business, 
in  a  great  department,  dealing  with  the  internal  affairs 
of  the  country,  the  population  of  the  country  —  why 
should  that  be  put  into  the  Department  of  Commerce?"1 
When  the  Interior  Department  was  organized,  it  took 
from  the  existing  departments  most  of  the  miscellane- 
ous matters  which  did  not  properly  belong  to  the  exist- 
ing departments.  When  the  Department  of  Commerce 
and  Labor  was  organized  in  1903,  again  from  the  exist- 
ing departments  were  taken  many  of  the  unrelated 
matters  which  had  been  imposed  upon  those  depart- 
ments. When  the  time  comes  for  the  creation  of  a  new 
department  in  the  Federal  Executive,  it  is  to  be  hoped 
that  a  logical  rearrangement  of  the  functions  of  the 
various  departments  will  be  made.  The  possibilities  for 
development  of  the  United  States  are  boundless,  and 
as  I  said  at  the  beginning  of  these  studies,  there  is  noth- 
ing which  better  indicates  the  development  of  this  na- 
tion than  the  amazing  increase  in  the  power  and  the 
functions  of  the  Federal  Executive.  In  the  future  it  is 
to  be  expected  that  the  functions  of  the  Federal  Execu- 
tive will  become  broader  and  more  far-reaching  as  the 
natural  development  of  the  nation  continues. 

i  Organization  and  Law  of  the  Department  of  Commerce  and 
Labor  (1904),  p.  438. 


APPENDIX 


LIST  OF  PRESIDENTS  AND   VICE-PRESIDENTS  AND  THE 
LENGTH   OF   SERVICE   RENDERED 


Presidents 

Vice-Presidents 

Service 

George  Washington 

John  Adams 

Apr. 

30, 

1789-Mar. 

3, 

1797 

John  Adams 

Thomas  Jefferson 

Mar. 

4, 

1797-Mar. 

3, 

1801 

Thomas  Jefferson 

Aaron  Burr 

Mar. 

4, 

1801-Mar. 

3, 

1805 

Thomas  Jefferson 

George  Clinton 

Mar. 

4, 

1805-Mar. 

3, 

1809 

James  Madison 

George  Clinton 

(died  Apr.  20,  1812) 

Mar. 

4, 

1809-Mar. 

3, 

1813 

James  Madison 

Elbridge  Gerry 

(died  Nov.  23,  1814) 

Mar. 

4, 

1813-Mar. 

3, 

1817 

James  Monroe 

Daniel  D.  Tompkins 

Mar. 

4, 

1817-Mar. 

3, 

1825 

John  Quinoy  Adams 

John  C.  Calhoun 

Mar. 

4, 

1825-Mar. 

3, 

1829 

Andrew  Jackson 

John  C.  Calhoun  (resigned 
Dec.  28,  to  become  U.S. 
Senator) 

Mar. 

4, 

1829-Mar. 

3, 

1833. 

Andrew  Jackson 

Martin  Van  Buren 

Mar. 

4, 

1833-Mar. 

3, 

1837 

Martin  Van  Buxen 

Richard  M.  Johnson 

Mar. 

4, 

1837-Mar. 

3, 

1841 

William  Henry  Har- 

rison 

John  Tyler 

Mar. 

4, 

1841-Apr. 

4, 

1841 

John  Tyler 

Apr. 

6, 

1841-Mar. 

3, 

1845 

James  K.  Polk 

George  M.  Dallas 

Mar. 

4, 

1845-Mar. 

3, 

1849 

Zachary  Taylor 

Millard  Fillmore 

Mar. 

5, 

1849-July 

9, 

1850 

Millard  Fillmore 

July 

10, 

1850-Mar. 

3, 

1853 

Franklin  Pierce 

William  R.  King  (died  Apr. 
18,  1853) 

Mar. 

4, 

1853-Mar. 

3, 

1857 

James  Buchanan 

John  C.  Breckinridge 

Mar. 

4, 

1857-Mar. 

3, 

1861 

Abraham  Lincoln 

Hannibal  Hamlin 

Mar. 

4, 

1861-Mar. 

3, 

1865 

Abraham  Lincoln 

Andrew  Johnson 

Mar. 

4, 

1865-Apr. 

15, 

1865 

Andrew  Johnson 

Apr. 

15, 

1865-Mar. 

3 

1869 

Ulysses  S.  Grant 

Schuyler  Colfax 

Mar. 

4, 

1869-Mar. 

3, 

1873 

Ulysses  S.  Grant 

Henry  Wilson 

(died  Nov.  22,  1875) 

Mar. 

4, 

1873-Mar. 

3, 

1877 

Rutherford  B.     i 

Hayes 

William  A.  Wheeler 

Mar. 

4, 

1877-Mar. 

3, 

1881 

James  A.  Garfield 

Chester  A.  Arthur 

Mar. 

4, 

1881-Sept. 

19 

1881 

Chester  A.  Arthur 

Sept. 

20 

1881-Mar. 

3 

1885 

Grover  Cleveland 

Thomas  A.  Hendricks 
(died  Nov.  25,  1885) 

Mar. 

4 

1885-Mar. 

3, 

1889 

Benjamin  Harrison 

Levi  P.  Morton 

Mar. 

4 

1889-Mar. 

3, 

1893 

Grover  Cleveland 

Adlai  E.  Stevenson 

Mar. 

4 

1893-Mar. 

3 

1897 

William  McKinley 

Garrett  A.  Hobart 
(died  Nov.  21,  1899) 

Mar. 

4 

1897-Mar. 

3 

1901 

William  McKinley 

Theodore  Roosevelt 

Mar. 

4, 

1901-Sept. 

14 

1901 

Theodore  Roosevelt 

Sept. 

11 

1901-Mar. 

3 

1905 

Theodore  Roosevelt 

Charles  W.  Fairbanks 

Mar. 

4 

1905-Mar. 

3 

1909 

William  H.  Taft 

James  S.  Sherman 

Mar. 

4 

1909-Mar. 

3 

1913 

Woodrow  Wilson 

Thomas  R.  Marshall 

Mar. 

4 

1913- 

The  fact  that  several  Presidents  served  two  terms  with  different  Vice-Presidents 
will  account  for  the  repetition  of  the  names  of  the  Presidents.  It  will  be  seen  from 
the  above  list  that  there  have  been  thirty-five  presidential  terms  of  office,  although 
some  of  these  terms,  as  in  the  case  of  President  Roosevelt's  first  service,  were  not  for 
a  full  elective  term.  There  have  been  twenty-seven  Presidents. 


B 

THE   CONSTITUTION   OF  THE  UNITED  STATES 
OF  AMERICA 

We  the  People  of  the  United  States,  in  Order  to  form  a  more 
perfect  Union,  establish  Justice,  insure  domestic  Tranquility,  pro- 
vide for  the  common  Defence,  promote  the  general  Welfare,  and 
secure  the  Blessings  of  Liberty  to  ourselves  and  our  Posterity,  do 
ordain  and  establish  this  Constitution  for  the  United  States  of 
America. 

Article  I 

Section  1.  All  legislative  Powers  herein  granted  shall  be  vested 
in  a  Congress  of  the  United  States,  which  shall  consist  of  a  Senate 
and  House  of  Representatives. 

Section  2.  The  House  of  Representatives  shall  be  composed  of 
Members  chosen  every  second  Year  by  the  People  of  the  several 
States,  and  the  Electors  in  each  State  shall  have  the  Qualifications 
requisite  for  Electors  of  the  most  numerous  Branch  of  the  State 
Legislature. 

No  person  shall  be  a  Representative  who  shall  not  have  attained 
to  the  Age  of  twenty-five  Years,  and  been  seven  Years  a  Citizen  of 
the  United  States,  and  who  shall  not,  when  elected,  be  an  Inhabit- 
ant of  that  State  in  which  he  shall  be  chosen. 

[Representatives  and  direct  Taxes  shall  be  apportioned  among 
the  several  States  which  may  be  included  within  this  Union,  accord- 
ing to  their  respective  Numbers,  which  shall  be  determined  by  add- 
ing to  the  whole  Number  of  free  Persons,  including  those  bound  to 
Service  for  a  Term  of  Years,  and  excluding  Indians  not  taxed,  three 
fifths  of  all  other  Persons.]  * 

The  actual  Enumeration  shall  be  made  within  three  Years  after 
the  first  Meeting  of  the  Congress  of  the  United  States,  and  within 
every  subsequent  Term  of  ten  Years,  in  such  Manner  as  they  shall 
by  Law  direct.  The  Number  of  Representatives  shall  not  exceed 
one  for  every  thirty  Thousand,  but  each  State  shall  have  at  Least 
one  Representative;  and  until  such  enumeration  shall  be  made,  the 
State  of  New  Hampshire  shall  be  entitled  to  chuse  three,  Massachu- 

1  The  clause  included  in  brackets  is  amended  [by  the  Fourteenth  Amendment, 
second  section. 


APPENDIX  241 

setts  eight,  Rhode-Island  and  Providence  Plantations  one,  Con- 
necticut five,  New  York  six,  New  Jersey  four,  Pennsylvania  eight, 
Delaware  one,  Maryland  Six,  Virginia  ten,  North  Carolina  five, 
South  Carolina  five  and  Georgia  three. 

When  vacancies  happen  in  the  Representation  from  any  State, 
the  Executive  Authority  thereof  shall  issue  Writs  of  Election  to 
fill  such  Vacancies. 

The  House  of  Representatives  chall  chuse  their  Speaker  and 
other  Officers;  and  shall  have  the  sole  Power  of  Impeachment. 

Section  3.  The  Senate  of  the  United  States  shall  be  composed 
of  two  Senators  from  each  State,  chosen  by  the  Legislature  thereof, 
for  six  years;  and  each  Senator  shall  have  one  Vote. 

Immediately  after  they  shall  be  assembled  in  Consequence  of  the 
first  Election,  they  shall  be  divided  as  equally  as  may  be  into  three 
Classes.  The  Seats  of  the  Senators  of  the  first  Class  shall  be  vacated 
at  the  Expiration  of  the  second  Year,  of  the  second  Class  at  the 
Expiration  of  the  fourth  Year,  and  of  the  third  Class  at  the  Expira- 
tion of  the  sixth  Year,  so  that  one  third  may  be  chosen  every  second 
Year;  and  if  Vacancies  happen  by  Resignation,  or  otherwise,  during 
the  Recess  of  the  Legislature  of  any  State,  the  Executive  thereof 
may  make  temporary  Appointments  until  the  next  Meeting  of  the 
Legislature,  which  shall  then  fill  such  Vacancies. 

No  Person  shall  be  a  Senator  who  shall  not  have  attained  to  the 
Age  of  thirty  Years,  and  been  nine  Years  a  Citizen  of  the  United 
States,  and  who  shall  not,  when  elected,  be  an  Inhabitant  of  that 
State  for  which  he  shall  be  chosen. 

The  Vice  President  of  the  United  States  shall  be  President  of  the 
Senate,  but  shall  have  no  Vote,  unless  they  be  equally  divided. 

The  Senate  shall  chuse  their  other  Officers,  and  also  a  President 
pro  tempore,  in  the  absence  of  the  Vice  President,  or  when  he  shall 
exercise  the  Office  of  President  of  the  United  States. 

The  Senate  shall  have  the  sole  Power  to  try  all  Impeachments. 
When  sitting  for  that  Purpose,  they  shall  be  on  Oath  or  Affirma- 
tion. When  the  President  of  the  United  States  is  tried,  the  Chief 
Justice  shall  preside;  And  no  Person  shall  be  convicted  without  the 
Concurrence  of  two  thirds  of  the  Members  present. 

Judgment  in  Cases  of  Impeachment  shall  not  extend  further 
than  to  removal  from  Office,  and  disqualification  to  hold  and  enjoy 
any  Office  of  honor,  Trust  or  Profit  under  the  United  States;  but 
the  party  convicted  shall  nevertheless  be  liable  and  subject  to 
Indictment,  Trial,  Judgment  and  Punishment,  according  to  Law. 


242  APPENDIX 

Section  4.  The  Times,  Places  and  Manner  of  holding  Elections 
for  Senators  and  Representatives,  shall  be  prescribed  in  each  State 
by  the  Legislature  thereof;  but  the  Congress  may  at  any  time  by 
Law  make  or  alter  such  Regulations,  except  as  to  the  Places  of 
chusing  Senators. 

The  Congress  shall  assemble  at  least  once  in  every  Year,  and 
such  Meeting  shall  be  on  the  first  Monday  in  December,  unless 
they  shall  by  Law  appoint  a  different  Day. 

Section  5.  Each  House  shall  be  the  Judge  of  the  Elections, 
Returns  and  Qualifications  of  its  own  Members,  and  a  Majority  of 
each  shall  constitute  a  Quorum  to  do  Business;  but  a  smaller  Num- 
ber may  adjourn  from  day  to  day,  and  may  be  authorized  to  compel 
the  Attendance  of  absent  Members,  in  such  Manner,  and  under 
such  Penalties  as  each  House  may  provide. 

Each  House  may  determine  the  Rules  of  its  Proceedings,  punish 
its  Members  for  disorderly  Behavior,  and,  with  the  Concurrence  of 
two  thirds,  expel  a  Member. 

Each  House  shall  keep  a  Journal  of  its  Proceedings,  and  from 
time  to  time  publish  the  same,  excepting  such  Parts  as  may  in  their 
Judgment  require  Secrecy;  and  the  Yeas  and  Nays  of  the  Members 
of  either  House  on  any  question  shall,  at  the  Desire  of  one  fifth  of 
those  Present,  be  entered  on  the  Journal. 

Neither  House,  during  the  Session  of  Congress,  shall,  without 
the  Consent  of  the  other,  adjourn  for  more  than  three  days,  nor 
to  any  other  Place  than  that  in  which  the  two  Houses  shall  be  sit- 
ting. 

Section  6.  The  Senators  and  Representatives  shall  receive  a 
Compensation  for  their  Services,  to  be  ascertained  by  Law,  and 
paid  out  of  the  Treasury  of  the  United  States.  They  shall  in  all 
Cases,  except  Treason,  Felony  and  Breach  of  the  Peace,  be  privi- 
leged from  Arrest  during  their  Attendance  at  the  Session  of  their 
respective  Houses,  and  in  going  to  and  returning  from  the  same; 
and  for  any  Speech  or  Debate  in  either  House,  they  shall  not  be 
questioned  in  any  other  place. 

No  Senator  or  Representative  shall,  during  the  Time  for  which 
he  was  elected,  be  appointed  to  any  civil  Office  under  the  Authority 
of  the  United  States,  which  shall  have  been  created,  or  the  Emolu- 
ments whereof  shall  have  been  increased  during  such  time;  and  no 
Person  holding  any  Office  under  the  United  States,  shall  be  a 
Member  of  either  House  during  his  Continuance  in  Office. 

Section  7.   All  Bills  for  raising  Revenue  shall  originate  in  the 


APPENDIX  243 

House  of  Representatives;  but  the  Senate  may  propose  or  concur 
with  Amendments  as  on  other  Bills. 

Every  Bill  which  shall  have  passed  the  House  of  Representatives 
and  the  Senate,  shall  before  it  become  a  Law,  be  presented  to  the 
President  of  the  United  States;  If  he  approve  he  shall  sign  it,  but 
if  not  he  shall  return  it,  with  his  Objections  to  that  House  in  which 
it  shall  have  originated,  who  shall  enter  the  Objections  at  large  on 
their  Journal,  and  proceed  to  reconsider  it.  If  after  such  Recon- 
sideration two  thirds  of  that  House  shall  agree  to  pass  the  Bill,  it 
shall  be  sent,  together  with  the  Objections,  to  the  other  House,  by 
which  it  shall  likewise  be  reconsidered,  and  if  approved  by  two 
thirds  of  that  House,  it  shall  become  a  Law.  But  in  all  such  Cases 
the  Votes  of  both  Houses  shall  be  determined  by  Yeas  and  Nays, 
and  the  Names  of  the  Persons  voting  for  and  against  the  Bill  shall 
be  entered  on  the  Journal  of  each  House  respectively.  If  any  Bill 
shall  not  be  returned  by  the  President  within  ten  Days  (Sundays 
excepted)  after  it  shall  have  been  presented  to  him,  the  Same  shall 
be  a  Law,  in  like  manner  as  if  he  had  signed  it,  unless  the  Congress 
by  their  Adjournment  prevent  its  Return,  in  which  Case  it  shall 
not  be  a  Law. 

Every  Order,  Resolution,  or  Vote  to  which  the  Concurrence  of 
the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  may  be  necessary  (except 
on  a  question  of  Adjournment)  shall  be  presented  to  the  President 
of  the  United  States;  and  before  the  Same  shall  take  Effect,  shall 
be  approved  by  him,  or  being  disapproved  by  him,  shall  be  passed 
by  two  thirds  of  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives,  accord- 
ing to  the  Rules  and  Limitations  prescribed  in  the  Case  of  a  Bill. 

Section  8.  The  Congress  shall  have  Power  to  lay  and  collect 
Taxes,  Duties,  Imposts  and  Excises,  to  pay  the  Debts  and  provide 
for  the  common  Defence  and  general  Welfare  of  the  United  States; 
but  all  Duties,  Imposts  and  Excises  shall  be  uniform  throughout 
the  United  States; 

To  borrow  money  on  the  credit  of  the  United  States; 

To  regulate  Commerce  with  Foreign  Nations,  and  among  the 
several  States,  and  with  the  Indian  Tribes; 

To  establish  an  uniform  Rule  of  Naturalization,  and  uniform  Laws 
on  the  subject  of  Bankruptcies  throughout  the  United  States; 

To  coin  Money,  regulate  the  value  thereof,  and  of  foreign  Coin, 
and  fix  the  Standard  of  Weights  and  Measures; 

To  provide  for  the  Punishment  of  counterfeiting  the  securities 
and  current  Coin  of  the  United  States; 


244  APPENDIX 

To  establish  Post  Offices  and  post  Roads; 

To  promote  the  progress  of  Science  and  useful  Arts,  by  securing 
for  limited  Times  to  Authors  and  Inventors  the  exclusive  Right 
to  their  respective  Writings  and  Discoveries; 

To  constitute  Tribunals  inferior  to  the  Supreme  Court; 

To  define  and  punish  Piracies  and  Felonies  committed  on  the 
high  Seas,  and  Offenses  against  the  Law  of  Nations; 

To  declare  War,  grant  Letters  of  Marque  and  Reprisal,  and  make 
Rules  concerning  Captures  on  Land  and  Water; 

To  raise  and  support  Armies,  but  no  Appropriation  of  Money 
to  that  Use  shall  be  for  a  longer  Term  than  two  years; 

To  provide  and  maintain  a  Navy; 

To  make  Rules  for  the  Government  and  Regulation  of  the  land 
and  naval  Forces; 

To  provide  for  calling  forth  the  Militia  to  execute  the  Laws  of  the 
Union,  suppress  Insurrections  and  repel  Invasions; 

To  provide  for  organizing,  arming,  and  disciplining  the  Militia, 
and  for  governing  such  Part  of  them  as  may  be  employed  in  the 
Service  of  the  United  States,  reserving  to  the  States  respectively, 
the  appointment  of  the  Officers,  and  the  Authority  of  training  the 
Militia  according  to  the  discipline  prescribed  by  Congress; 

To  exercise  exclusive  Legislation  in  all  Cases  whatsoever,  over 
such  District  (not  exceeding  ten  Miles  square)  as  may,  by  Cession 
of  particular  States,  and  the  Acceptance  of  Congress,  become  the 
Seat  of  the  Government  of  the  United  States,  and  to  exercise  like 
Authority  over  all  Places  purchased  by  the  Consent  of  the  Legisla- 
ture of  the  State  in  which  the  Same  shall  be,  for  the  Erection  of 
Forts,  Magazines,  Arsenals,  dock-yards,  and  other  needful  Build- 
ings; —  And 

To  make  all  Laws  which  shall  be  necessary  and  proper  for  carry- 
ing into  Execution  the  foregoing  Powers,  and  all  other  Powers 
vested  by  this  Constitution  in  the  Government  of  the  United  States, 
or  in  any  Department  or  Officer  thereof. 

Section  9.  The  Migration  or  Importation  of  such  Persons  as 
any  of  the  States  now  existing  shall  think  proper  to  admit,  shall 
not  be  prohibited  by  the  Congress  prior  to  the  Year  one  thousand 
eight  hundred  and  eight,  but  a  Tax  or  duty  may  be  imposed  on  such 
Importation,  not  exceeding  ten  dollars  for  each  Person. 

The  privilege  of  the  Writ  of  Habeas  Corpus  shall  not  be  sus- 
pended unless  when  in  Cases  of  Rebellion  or  Invasion  the  public 
Safety  may  require  it. 


APPENDIX  245 

No  Bill  of  Attainder  or  ex  post  facto  Law  shall  be  passed. 

No  Capitation,  or  other  direct,  Tax  shall  be  laid,  unless  in  Pro- 
portion to  the  Census  or  Enumeration  herein  before  directed  to 
be  taken. 

No  Tax  or  Duty  shall  be  laid  on  Articles  exported  from  any  State. 

No  Preference  shall  be  given  by  any  Regulation  of  Commerce 
or  Revenue  to  the  Ports  of  one  State  over  those  of  another;  nor 
shall  Vessels  bound  to,  or  from,  one  State,  be  obliged  to  enter,  clear, 
or  pay  Duties  in  another. 

No  money  shall  be  drawn  from  the  Treasury,  but  in  consequence 
of  Appropriations  made  by  Law;  and  a  regular  Statement  and 
Account  of  the  Receipts  and  Expenditures  of  all  public  Money 
shall  be  published  from  time  to  time.  ( 

No  Title  of  Nobility  shall  be  granted  by  the  United  States; 
And  no  Person  holding  any  Office  of  Profit  or  Trust  under  them, 
shall  without  the  Consent  of  the  Congress,  accept  of  any  present, 
Emolument,  Office  or  Title,  of  any  kind  whatever,  from  any  King, 
Prince,  or  foreign  State. 

Section  10.  No  State  shall  enter  into  any  Treaty,  Alliance  or 
Confederation;  grant  Letters  of  Marque  and  Reprisal;  coin  Money, 
emit  Bills  of  Credit;  make  any  Thing  but  gold  and  silver  Coin  a 
Tender  in  Payment  of  Debts;  pass  any  Bill  of  Attainder,  ex  post 
facto  Law,  or  Law  impairing  the  obligation  of  Contracts,  or  grant 
any  Title  of  Nobility. 

No  State  shall,  without  the  Consent  of  the  Congress,  lay  any 
Imposts  or  Duties  on  Imports  or  Exports,  except  what  may  be 
absolutely  necessary  for  executing  its  inspection  Laws;  and  the 
net  Produce  of  all  Duties  and  Imposts,  laid  by  any  State  on  Im- 
ports or  Exports,  shall  be  for  the  Use  of  the  Treasury  of  the  United 
States,  and  all  such  Laws  shall  be  subject  to  the  Revision  and  Con- 
troul  of  the  Congress. 

No  State  shall,  without  the  Consent  of  Congress,  lay  any  duty 
of  Tonnage,  keep  Troops,  or  Ships  of  War  in  time  of  Peace,  enter 
into  any  Agreement  or  Compact  with  another  State,  or  with  a  for- 
eign Power,  or  engage  in  War,  unless  actually  invaded,  or  in  such 
imminent  Danger  as  will  not  admit  of  delay. 

Article  II 
Section  1.  The  Executive  Power  shall  be  vested  in  a  President 
of  the  United  States  of  America.   He  shall  hold  his  Office  during 
the  Term  of  four  Years,  and,  together,  with  the  Vice-President, 
chosen  for  the  same  Term,  be  elected,  as  follows: 


246  APPENDIX 

Each  State  shall  appoint,  in  such  Manner  as  the  Legislature 
thereof  may  direct,  a  Number  of  Electors,  equal  to  the  whole  Num- 
ber of  Senators  and  Representatives  to  which  the  State  may  be  en- 
titled in  the  Congress;  but  no  Senator  or  Representative,  or  Person 
holding  an  Office  of  Trust  or  Profit  under  the  United  States,  shall 
be  appointed  an  Elector. 

[The  Electors  shall  meet  in  their  respective  States,  and  vote  by 
ballot  for  two  persons,  of  whom  one  at  least  shall  not  be  an  Inhab- 
itant of  the  same  State  with  themselves.  And  they  shall  make  a 
List  of  all  the  Persons  voted  for,  and  of  the  Number  of  Votes  for 
each;  which  List  they  shall  sign  and  certify,  and  transmit  sealed 
to  the  Seat  of  the  Government  of  the  United  States,  directed  to  the 
President  of  the  Senate.  The  President  of  the  Senate  shall,  in  the 
Presence  of  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives,  open  all 
the  Certificates,  and  the  Votes  shall  then  be  counted.  The  Person 
having  the  greatest  Number  of  Votes  shall  be  the  President,  if  such 
Number  be  a  Majority  of  the  whole  Number,  of  Electors  appointed; 
and  if  there  be  more  than  one  who  have  such  Majority,  and  have 
an  equal  Number  of  Votes,  then  the  House  of  Representatives  shall 
immediately  chuse  by  Ballot  one  of  them  for  President;  and  if  no 
Person  have  a  Majority,  then  from  the  five  highest  on  the  List  the 
said  House  shall  in  like  Manner  chuse  the  President.  But  in  chusing 
the  President,  the  Votes  shall  be  taken  by  States,  the  Represen- 
tation from  each  State  having  one  Vote;  A  quorum  for  this  Purpose 
shall  consist  of  a  Member  or  Members  from  two-thirds  of  the 
States,  and  a  Majority  of  all  the  States  shall  be  necessary  to  a 
Choice.  In  every  case,  after  the  Choice  of  the  President,  the  Per- 
son having  the  greatest  Number  of  Votes  of  the  Electors  shall  be 
the  Vice  President.  But  if  there  should  remain  two  or  more  who 
have  equal  Votes,  the  Senate  shall  chuse  from  them  by  Ballot 
the  Vice-President.] 1 

The  Congress  may  determine  the  Time  of  chusing  the  Electors, 
and  the  Day  on  which  they  shall  give  their  Votes;  which  Day  shall 
be  the  same  throughout  the  United  States. 

No  person  except  a  natural  born  Citizen,  or  a  Citizen  of  the 
United  States,  at  the  time  of  the  Adoption  of  this  Constitution, 
shall  be  eligible  to  the  Office  of  President;  neither  shall  any  Per- 
son be  eligible  to  that  Office  who  shall  not  have  attained  to  the 
Age  of  thirty-five  Years,  and  been  fourteen  Years  a  Resident 
within  the  United  States. 

.lJThis  clause  has  been  superseded  by  the  Twelfth  Amendment. 


APPENDIX  247 

In  Case  of  the  Removal  of  the  President  from  Office,  or  of  his 
Death,  Resignation,  or  Inability  to  discharge  the  Powers  and 
Duties  of  the  said  Office,  the  same  shall  devolve  on  the  Vice-Presi- 
dent, and  the  Congress  may  by  Law  provide  for  the  Case  of  Re- 
moval, Death,  Resignation  or  Inability,  both  of  the  President  and 
Vice  President,  declaring  what  Officer  shall  then  act  as  President, 
and  such  Officer  shall  act  accordingly,  until  the  Disability  be  re- 
moved, or  a  President  shall  be  elected. 

The  President  shall,  at  stated  Times,  receive  for  his  Services,  a 
Compensation,  which  shall  neither  be  increased  nor  diminished 
during  the  Period  for  which  he  shall  have  been  elected,  and  he  shall 
not  receive  within  that  Period  any  other  Emolument  from  the 
United  States  or  any  of  them. 

Before  he  enter  on  the  Execution  of  his  Office,  he  shall  take  the 
following  Oath  or  Affirmation:  —  "I  do  solemnly  swear  (or  affirm) 
that  I  will  faithfully  execute  the  Office  of  President  of  the  United 
States,  and  will  to  the  best  of  my  Ability,  preserve,  protect  and 
defend  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States." 

Section  2.  The  President  shall  be  Commander  in  Chief  of  the 
Army  and  Navy  of  the  United  States,  and  of  the  Militia  of  the 
several  States,  when  called  into  the  actual  Service  of  the  United 
States;  he  may  require  the  Opinion,  in  writing,  of  the  principal 
Officer  in  each  of  the  executive  Departments,  upon  any  subject 
relating  to  the  Duties  of  their  respective  Offices,  and  he  shall  have 
the  Power  to  grant  Reprieves  and  Pardons  for  Offenses  against 
the  United  States,  except  in  Cases  of  Impeachment. 

He  shall  have  Power,  by  and  with  the  Advice  and  Consent  of 
the  Senate,  to  make  Treaties,  provided  two-thirds  of  the  Senators 
present  concur;  and  he  shall  nominate,  and  by  and  with  the  Ad- 
vice and  Consent  of  the  Senate,  shall  appoint  Ambassadors,  other 
public  Ministers  and  Consuls,  Judges  of  the  Supreme  Court,  and 
all  other  Officers  of  the  United  States,  whose  appointments  are 
not  herein  otherwise  provided  for  and  which  shall  be  established 
by  Law;  but  the  Congress  may  by  Law  vest  the  Appointment  of 
such  inferior  Officers  as  they  think  proper,  in  the  President  alone, 
in  the  Courts  of  Law,  or  in  the  Heads  of  Departments. 

The  President  shall  have  Power  to  fill  up  all  Vacancies  that  may 
happen  during  the  Recess  of  the  Senate,  by  granting  Commissions 
which  shall  expire  at  the  End  of  their  next  session. 

Section  3.  He  shall  from  time  to  time  give  to  the  Congress 
Information  of  the  State  of  the  Union,  and  recommend  to  their 


248  APPENDIX 

Consideration  such  Measures  as  he  shall  judge  necessary  and  ex- 
pedient; he  may,  on  extraordinary  Occasions,  convene  both  Houses, 
or  either  of  them,  and  in  Case  of  Disagreement  between  them,  with 
Respect  to  the  Time  of  Adjournment,  he  may  adjourn  them  to 
such  Time  as  he  shall  think  proper;  he  shall  receive  Ambassadors 
and  other  public  Ministers;  he  shall  take  Care  that  the  Laws  be 
faithfully  executed,  and  shall  Commission  all  the  Officers  of  the 
United  States. 

Section  4.  The  President,  Vice  President  and  all  civil  Officers 
of  the  United  States,  shall  be  removed  from  Office  on  Impeach- 
ment for,  and  Conviction  of,  Treason,  Bribery,  or  other  high 
Crimes  and  Misdemeanors. 

Article  III 

Section  1.  The  judicial  Power  of  the  United  States,  shall  be 
vested  in  one  supreme  Court,  and  in  such  inferior  Courts  as  the 
Congress  may  from  time  to  time  ordain  and  establish.  The  Judges, 
both  of  the  supreme  and  inferior  Courts,  shall  hold  their  Offices 
during  good  Behaviour,  and  shall,  at  stated  Times,  receive  for  their 
Services  a  Compensation  which  shall  not  be  diminished  during 
their  Continuance  in  Office. 

Section  2.  The  judicial  Power  shall  extend  to  all  Cases,  in  Law 
and  Equity,  arising  under  this  Constitution,  the  Laws  of  the 
United  States,  and  Treaties  made,  or  which  shall  be  made,  under 
their  Authority;  —  to  all  Cases  affecting  Ambassadors,  other 
public  Ministers  and  Consuls;  —  to  all  Cases  of  admiralty  and 
Maritime  Jurisdiction;  —  to  Controversies  to  which  the  United 
States  shall  be  a  Party;  —  to  Controversies  between  two  or  more 
States;  —  between  a  State  and  Citizens  of  another  State;  —  be- 
tween Citizens  of  different  States  —  between  Citizens  of  the  same 
State  claiming  Lands  under  Grants  of  different  States,  and  between 
a  State,  or  the  Citizens  thereof,  and  foreign  States,  Citizens  or  Sub- 
jects. 

In  all  cases  affecting  Ambassadors,  other  public  Ministers  and 
Consuls,  and  those  in  which  a  State  shall  be  a  Party,  the  supreme 
Court  shall  have  original  Jurisdiction.  In  all  the  other  Cases  before 
mentioned,  the  supreme  Court  shall  have  appellate  Jurisdiction, 
both  as  to  Law  and  Fact,  with  such  Exceptions,  and  under  such 
Regulations  as  the  Congress  shall  make. 

The  trial  of  all  Crimes,  except  in  cases  of  Impeachment,  shall 
be  by  Jury;  and  such  Trial  shall  be  held  in  the  State  where  the  said 


APPENDIX  249 

Crimes  shall  have  been  committed;  but  when  not  committed  within 
any  State,  the  Trial  shall  be  at  such  Place  or  Places  as  the  Congress 
may  by  Law  have  directed. 

Section  3.  Treason  against  the  United  States,  shall  consist 
only  in  levying  War  against  them,  or  in  adhering  to  their  Enemies, 
giving  them  Aid  and  Comfort.  No  person  shall  be  convicted  of 
Treason  unless  on  the  Testimony  of  two  Witnesses  to  the  same 
overt  Act,  or  on  Confession  in  open  Court. 

The  Congress  shall  have  power  to  declare  the  Punishment  of 
Treason,  but  no  Attainder  of  Treason  shall  work  Corruption  of 
Blood,  or  Forfeiture  except  during  the  Life  of  the  Person  attainted. 

Article  IV 

Section  1.  Full  Faith  and  Credit  shall  be  given  in  each  State 
to  the  public  Acts,  Records,  and  judicial  Proceedings  of  every  other 
State.  And  the  Congress  may  by  general  Laws,  prescribe  the 
Manner  in  which  such  Acts,  Records  and  Proceedings  shall  be 
proved,  and  the  Effect  thereof. 

Section  2.  The  Citizens  of  each  State  shall  be  entitled  to  all 
Privileges  and  Immunities  of  Citizens  in  the  several  States. 

A  Person  charged  in  any  State  with  Treason,  Felony,  or  other 
Crime,  who  shall  flee  from  Justice,  and  be  found  in  another  State, 
shall  on  demand  of  the  executive  Authority  of  the  State  from  which 
he  fled,  be  delivered  up,  to  be  removed  to  the  State  having  Jurisdic- 
tion of  the  Crime. 

No  Person  held  to  Service  or  Labor  in  one  State,  under  the  Laws 
thereof,  escaping  into  another,  shall,  in  Consequence  of  any  Law 
or  Regulation  therein,  be  discharged  from  such  Service  or  Labor, 
but  shall  be  delivered  up  on  Claim  of  the  Party  to  whom  such 
Service  or  Labor  may  be  due. 

Section  3.  New  States  may  be  admitted  by  the  Congress  into 
this  Union;  but  no  new  State  shall  be  formed  or  erected  within  the 
Jurisdiction  of  any  other  State;  nor  any  State  be  formed  by  the  Junc- 
tion of  two  or  more  States,  or  parts  of  States,  without  the  Consent 
of  the  Legislatures  of  the  States  concerned  as  well  as  of  the  Congress. 

The  Congress  shall  have  Power  to  dispose  of  and  make  all  need- 
ful Rules  and  Regulations  respecting  the  Territory  or  other  Prop- 
erty belonging  to  the  United  States;  and  nothing  in  this  Constitu- 
tion shall  be  so  construed  as  to  Prejudice  any  Claims  of  the  United 
States,  or  of  any  particular  State. 

Section  4.  The  United  States  shall  guarantee  to  every  State  in 


250  APPENDIX 

this  Union  a  Republican  Form  of  Government,  and  shall  protect 
each  of  them  against  invasion;  and  on  Application  of  the  Legisla- 
ture, or  of  the  Executive  (when  the  Legislature  cannot  be  convened) 
against  domestic  Violence. 

Article  V 
The  Congress,  whenever  two-thirds  of  both  Houses  shall  deem 
it  necessary,  shall  propose  Amendments  to  this  Constitution,  or, 
on  the  Application  of  the  Legislatures  of  two-thirds  of  the  several 
States,  shall  call  a  Convention  for  proposing  Amendments,  which, 
in  either  Case,  shall  be  valid  to  all  Intents  and  Purposes,  as  part  of 
this  Constitution,  when.ratified  by  the  Legislatures  of  three-fourths 
of  the  several  States,  or  by  Conventions  in  three-fourths  thereof,  as 
the  one  or  the  other  Mode  of  Ratification  may  be  proposed  by  the 
Congress;  Provided  that  no  Amendment  which  may  be  made  prior 
to  the  Year  One  thousand  eight  hundred  and  eight  shall  in  any 
manner  affect  the  first  and  fourth  Clauses  in  the  Ninth  Section  of 
the  first  Article;  and  that  no  State,  without  its  Consent,  shall  be 
deprived  of  its  equal  Suffrage  in  the  Senate. 

Article  VI 

All  debts  contracted  and  Engagements  entered  into,  before  the 
Adoption  of  this  Constitution,  shall  be  as  valid  against  the  United 
States  under  this  Constitution,  as  under  the  Confederation. 

This  Constitution,  and  the  Laws  of  the  United  States  which  shall 
be  made  in  Pursuance  thereof;  and  all  Treaties  made,  or  which  shall 
be  made,  under  the  Authority  of  the  United  States,  shall  be  the 
supreme  Law  of  the  Land;  and  the  Judges  in  every  State  shall  be 
bound  thereby,  any  Thing  in  the  Constitution  or  Laws  of  any  State 
to  the  Contrary  notwithstanding. 

The  Senators  and  Representatives  before  mentioned,  and  the 
Members  of  the  several  State  Legislatures,  and  all  executive  and 
judicial  Officers,  both  of  the  United  States  and  of  the  several  States, 
shall  be  bound  by  Oath  or  Affirmation,  to  support  this  Constitution; 
but  no  religious  Test  shall  ever  be  required  as  a  Qualification  to  any 
Office  or  public  Trust  under  the  United  States. 

Article  VII 
The  Ratification  of  the  Conventions  of  nine  States  shall  be  suffi- 
cient for  the  Establishment  of  this  Constitution  between  the  States 
so  ratifying  the  Same. 


APPENDIX 


251 


Done  in  Convention  by  the  Unanimous  Consent  of  the  States 
present  the  Seventeenth  Day  of  September  in  the  Year  of  our  Lord 
one  thousand  seven  hundred  and  eighty  seven  and  of  the  Independ- 
ence of  the  United  States  of  America  the  Twelfth.  In  Witness 
whereof  We  have  hereunto  subscribed  our  Names, 

Go.  Washington 
Presidt.  and  deputy  from  Virginia. 


John  Langdon 


Nathaniel  Gorham 


Wm.  Saml.  Johnson 


New  Hampshire 

Nicholas  Gilman 

Massachusetts 

Rufus  King 

Connecticut 

Roger  Sherman 


New  York 


Alexander  Hamilton 


Wil:  Livingston 
David  Brearley 


B.  Franklin 
Robt.  Morris 
Thos.  Fitzsimons 
James  Wilson 


Geo.  Read 
John  Dickinson 
Jaco:  Broom 


James  McHenry 
Danl.  Carroll 


John  Blah* 


New  Jersey 

Wm.  Patterson 
Jona:  Dayton 

Pennsylvania 

Thomas  Mifflin 
Geo.  Clymer 
Jared  Ingersoll 
Gouv.  Morris 

Delaware 

Gunning  Bedford,  Jun. 
Richard  Bassett 

Maryland 

Dan.  of  St.  Thos.  Jenifer 


Virginia 

James  Madison,  Jr. 


252  APPENDIX 

North  Carolina 
Wm.  Blount  Richd.  Dobbs  Spaight 

Hu.  Williamson 

South  Carolina 
H.  Rutledge  Charles  Cotesworth  Pinck- 

NEY 

Charles  Pinckney  Pierce  Butler 

Georgia 
William  Few  Abr.  Baldwin 

Attest:  William  Jackson,  Secretary. 

Articles  in  addition  to,  and  amendment  of,  the  Consti- 
tution of  the  United  States  of  America,  proposed  by 
Congress,  and  ratified  by  the  Legislatures  of  the  Several 
States,  Pursuant  to  the  Fifth  Article  of  the  original 
Constitution. 

Article  I 
Congress  shall  make  no  law  respecting  an  establishment 'of  reli- 
gion, or  prohibiting  the  free  exercise  thereof;  or  abridging  the  free- 
dom of  speech,  or  of  the  press;  or  the  right  of  the  people  peaceably 
to  assemble,  and  to  petition  the  Government  for  a  redress  of  griev- 
ances.1 

Article  II 
A  well  regulated  Militia,  being  necessary  to  the  security  of  a  free 
State,  the  right  of  the  people  to  keep  and  bear  Arms,  shall  not  be 
infringed. 

i  The  first  ten  amendments  to  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States  were  pro- 
posed to  the  legislatures  of  the  several  States  by  the  First  Congress,  on  the  25th 
of  September,  1789.  They  were  ratified  by  the  following  States,  and  the  notifica- 
tions of  ratification  by  the  governors  thereof  were  successively  communicated  by 
the  President  to  Congress:  New  Jersey,  November  20,  1789;  Maryland,  December 
19,  1789;  North  Carolina,  December  22,  1789;  South  Carolina,  January  19,  1790; 
New  Hampshire,  January  25,  1790;  Delaware,  January  28,  1790;  Pennsylvania, 
March  10,  1790;  New  York,  March  27,  1790;  Rhode  Island,  June  15,  1790;  Ver- 
mont, November  3,  1791,  and  Virginia,  December  15,  1791.  There  is  no  evidence  on 
the  journals  of  Congress  that  the  legislatures  of  Connecticut,  Georgia,  and  Massa- 
chusetts ratified  them. 


APPENDIX  253 

Article  III 
No  Soldier  shall,  in  time  of  peace  be  quartered  in  any  house, 
without  the  consent  of  the  Owner,  nor  in  time  of  war,  but  in  a 
manner  to  be  prescribed  by  law. 

Article  IV 
The  right  of  the  people  to  be  secure  in  their  persons,  houses, 
papers,  and  effects,  against  unreasonable  searches  and  seizures, 
shall  not  be  violated,  and  no  Warrants  shall  issue,  but  upon  prob- 
able cause,  supported  by  Oath  or  affirmation,  and  particularly 
describing  the  place  to  be  searched,  and  the  persons  or  things  to  be 
seized. 

Article  V 

No  person  shall  be  held  to  answer  for  a  capital,  or  otherwise  infa- 
mous crime,  unless  on  a  presentment  or  indictment  of  a  Grand  Jury, 
except  in  cases  arising  in  the  land  or  naval  forces,  or  in  the  Militia, 
when  in  actual  service  in  time  of  War  or  public  danger;  nor  shall  any 
person  be  subject  for  the  same  offence  to  be  twice  put  in  jeopardy 
of  life  or  limb;  nor  shall  be  compelled  in  any  criminal  case  to  be  a 
witness  against  himself,  nor  be  deprived  of  life,  liberty,  or  property, 
without  due  process  of  law;  nor  shall  private  property  be  taken  for 
public  use,  without  just  compensation. 

Article  VI 
In  all  criminal  prosecutions,  the  accused  shall  enjoy  the  right  to 
a  speedy  and  public  trial,  by  an  impartial  jury  of  the  State  and 
district  wherein  the  crime  shall  have  been  committed,  which  dis- 
trict shall  have  been  previously  ascertained  by  law;  and  to  be 
informed  of  the  nature  and  cause  of  the  accusation;  to  be  con- 
fronted with  the  witnesses  against  him;  to  have  compulsory  process 
for  obtaining  witnesses  in  his  favor,  and  to  have  the  Assistance  of 
Counsel  for  his  defence. 

Article  VII 
In  suits  at  common  law,  where  the  value  in  controversy  shall 
exceed  twenty  dollars,  the  right  of  trial  by  jury  shall  be  preserved, 
and  no  fact  tried  by  a  jury,  shall  be  otherwise  re-examined  in  any 
Court  of  the  United  States,  than  according  to  the  rules  of  the  com- 
mon law. 


254  APPENDIX 

Article  VIII 
Excessive  bail  shall  not  be  required,  nor  excessive  fines  imposed, 
nor  cruel  and  unusual  punishments  inflicted. 

Article  IX 
The  enumeration  in  the  Constitution,  of  certain  rights,  shall  not 
be  construed  to  deny  or  disparage  others  retained  by  the  people. 

Article  X 
The  powers  not  delegated  to  the  United  States  by  the  Constitu- 
tion, nor  prohibited  by  it  to  the  States,  are  reserved  to  the  States 
respectively,  or  to  the  people. 

Article  XI 
The  Judicial  power  of  the  United  States  shall  not  be  construed 
to  extend  to  any  suit  in  law  or  equity,  commenced  or  prosecuted 
against  one  of  the  United  States  by  Citizens  of  another  State,  or 
by  Citizens  or  Subjects  of  any  Foreign  State.1 

Article  XII 

The  Electors  shall  meet  in  their  respective  states  and  vote  by 
ballot  for  President  and  Vice-President,  one  of  whom,  at  least, 
shall  not  be  an  inhabitant  of  the  same  state  with  themselves;  they 
shall  name  in  their  ballots  the  person  voted  for  as  President,  and  in 
distinct  ballots  the  person  voted  for  as  Vice-President,  and  they 
shall  make  distinct  lists  of  all  persons  voted  for  as  President,  and 
of  all  persons  voted  for  as  Vice-President,  and  of  the  number  of 
votes  for  each,  which  lists  they  shall  sign  and  certify,  and  transmit 
sealed  to  the  seat  of  the  government  of  the  United  States,  directed 
to  the  President  of  the  Senate;  — 

The  President  of  the  Senate  shall,  in  the  presence  of  the  Senate 
and  House  of  Representatives,  open  all  the  certificates  and  the 
votes  shall  then  be  counted;  —  The  person  having  the  greatest  num- 
ber of  votes  for  President,  shall  be  the  President,  if  such  number  be 
a  majority  of  the  whole  number  of  Electors  appointed;  and  if  no 
person  have  such  majority,  then  from  the  persons  having  the  highest 
numbers  not  exceeding  three  on  the  list  of  those  voted  for  as  Presi- 

1  The  Eleventh  Amendment  to  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States  was  pro- 
posed to  the  legislatures  of  the  several  States  by  the  Third  Congress,  on  the  5th  of 
March,  1794;  and  was  declared  in  a  message  from  the  President  to  Congress,  dated 
the  Sth  of  January,  1798,  to  have  been  ratified  by  the  legislatures  of  three  fourths 
of  the  States. 


APPENDIX  255 

dent,  the  House  of  Representatives  shall  choose  immediately,  by 
ballot,  the  President.  But  in  choosing  the  President,  the  votes 
shall  be  taken  by  states,  the  representation  from  each  state  having 
one  vote;  a  quorum  for  this  purpose  shall  consist  of  a  member  or 
members  from  two-thirds  of  the  states,  and  a  majority  of  all  the 
states  shall  be  necessary  to  a  choice.  And  if  the  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives shall  not  choose  a  President  whenever  the  right  of  choice 
shall  devolve  upon  them,  before  the  fourth  day  of  March  next  fol- 
lowing, then  the  Vice-President  shall  act  as  President,  as  in  the  case 
of  the  death  or  other  constitutional  disability  of  the  President. 
—  The  person  having  the  greatest  number  of  votes  as  Vice-President, 
shall  be  the  Vice-President,  if  such  number  be  a  majority  of  the 
whole  number  of  Electors  appointed,  and  if  no  person  have  a  major- 
ity, then  from  the  two  highest  numbers  on  the  list,  the  Senate  shall 
choose  the  Vice-President;  a  quorum  for  the  purpose  shall  consist 
of  two-thirds  of  the  whole  number  of  Senators,  and  a  majority  of 
the  whole  number  shall  be  necessary  to  a  choice.  But  no  person 
constitutionally  ineligible  to  the  office  of  President  shall  be  eligible 
to  that  of  Vice-President  of  the  United  States.1 

Article  XIII 

Section  1.  Neither  slavery  nor  involuntary  servitude,  except  aa 
a  punishment  for  crime  whereof  the  party  shall  have  been  duly 
convicted,  shall  exist  within  the  United  States,  or  any  place  subject 
to  their  jurisdiction. 

Section  2.  Congress  shall  have  power  to  enforce  this  article  by 
appropriate  legislation.2 

Article  XIV 

Section  1.  All  persons  born  or  naturalized  in  the  United  States, 

and  subject  to  the  jurisdiction  thereof,  are  citizens  of  the  United 

States  and  of  the  State  wherein  they  reside.  No  State  shall  make  or 

enforce  any  law  which  shall  abridge  the  privileges  or  immunities 

1  The  Twelfth  Amendment  to  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States  was  pro- 
posed to  the  legislatures  of  the  several  States  by  the  Eighth  Congress,  on  the  12th 
of  December,  1803,  in  lieu  of  the  original  third  paragraph  of  the  first  section  of  the 
second  article;  and  was  declared  in  a  proclamation  of  the  Secretary  of  State,  dated 
the  25th  of  September,  1804,  to  have  been  ratified  by  the  legislatures  of  three  fourths 
of  the  States. 

2  The  Thirteenth  Amendment  to  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States  was  pro- 
posed to  the  legislatures  of  the  several  States  by  the  Thirty-eighth  Congress,  on 
the  1st  of  February,  1865,  and  was  declared,  in  a  proclamation  of  the  Secretary  of 
State,  dated  the  18th  of  December,  1865,  to  have  been  ratified  by  the  legislatures 
of  twenty-seven  of  the  thirty-six  States. 


256  APPENDIX 

of  citizens  of  the  United  States;  nor  shall  any  State  deprive  any 
person  of  life,  liberty,  or  property,  without  due  process  of  law;  nor 
deny  to  any  person  within  its  jurisdiction  the  equal  protection  of 
the  laws. 

Section  2.  Representatives  shall  be  apportioned  among  the 
several  States  according  to  their  respective  numbers,  counting  the 
whole  number  of  persons  in  each  State,  excluding  Indians  not 
taxed.  But  when  the  right  to  vote  at  any  election  for  the  choice  of 
electors  for  President  and  Vice-President  of  the  United  States, 
Representatives  in  Congress,  the  Executive  and  Judicial  officers  of 
a  State,  or  the  members  of  the  Legislature  thereof,  is  denied  to  any 
of  the  male  inhabitants  of  such  State,  being  twenty-one  years  of 
age,  and  citizens  of  the  United  States,  or  in  any  way  abridged,  except 
for  participation  in  rebellion,  or  other  crime,  the  basis  of  represen- 
tation therein  shall  be  reduced  in  the  proportion  which  the  number 
of  such  male  citizens  shall  bear  to  the  whole  number  of  male  citizens 
twenty-one  years  of  age  in  such  State. 

Section  3.  No  person  shall  be  a  Senator  or  Representative  in 
Congress,  or  elector  of  President  and  Vice-President,  or  hold  any 
office,  civil  or  military,  under  the  United  States,  or  under  any  State, 
who,  having  previously  taken  an  oath,  as  a  member  of  Congress,  or 
as  an  officer  of  the  United  States,  or  as  a  member  of  any  State  legis- 
lature, or  as  an  executive  or  judicial  officer  of  any  State,  to  support 
the  Constitution  of  the  United  States,  shall  have  engaged  in  insur- 
rection or  rebellion  against  the  same,  or  given  aid  or  comfort  to  the 
enemies  thereof.  But  Congress  may  by  a  vote  of  two-thirds  of  each 
House,  remove  such  disability. 

Section  4.  The  validity  of  the  public  debt  of  the  United  States, 
authorized  by  law,  including  debts  incurred  for  payment  of  pen- 
sions and  bounties  for  services  in  suppressing  insurrection  or  rebel- 
lion, shall  not  be  questioned.  But  neither  the  United  States  nor 
any  State  shall  assume  or  pay  any  debt  or  obligation  incurred  in  aid 
of  insurrection  or  rebellion  against  the  United  States,  or  any  claim 
for  the  loss  or  emancipation  of  any  slave;  but  all  such  debts,  obliga- 
tions and  claims  shall  be  held  illegal  and  void. 

Section  5.  The  Congress  shall  have  power  to  enforce,  by  appro- 
priate legislation,  the  provisions  of  this  article.1 

1  The  Fourteenth  Amendment  to  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States  was  pro- 
posed to  the  legislatures  of  the  several  States  by  the  Thirty-ninth  Congress,  on  the 
10th  of  June,  1866.  The  Secretary  of  State  issued  a  proclamation,  dated  the  28th 
of  July,  1868,  declaring  that  the  amendment  had  been  ratified  by  the  legislatures  of 
thirty  of  the  thirty-six  States. 


APPENDIX  257 

Article  XV 

Section  1.  The  right  of  citizens  of  the  United  States  to  vote  shall 
not  be  denied  or  abridged  by  the  United  States  or  by  any  state  on 
account  of  race,  color,  or  previous  condition  of  servitude. 

Section  2.  The  Congress  shall  have  power  to  enforce  this  article 
by  appropriate  legislation.1 

Article  XVI 
The  Congress  shall  have  power  to  lay  and  collect  taxes  on 
incomes,  from  whatever  source  derived,  without  apportionment 
among  the  several  States,  and  without  regard  to  any  census  or  enu- 
meration.2 

Article  XVII 

The  Senate  of  the  United  States  shall  be  composed  of  two  Sena- 
tors from  each  State,  elected  by  the  people  thereof,  for  six  years; 
and  each  Senator  shall  have  one  vote.  The  electors  in  each  State 
shall  have  the  qualifications  requisite  for  electors  of  the  most  numer- 
ous branch  of  the  State  legislatures. 

When  vacancies  happen  in  the  representation  of  any  State  in  the 
Senate,  the  executive  authority  of  such  State  shall  issue  writs  of 
election  to  fill  such  vacancies;  Provided,  That  the  legislature  of  any 
State  may  empower  the  executive  thereof  to  make  temporary  ap- 
pointments until  the  people  fill  the  vacancies  by  election  as  the 
legislature  may  direct. 

This  amendment  shall  not  be  so  construed  as  to  affect  the  elec- 
tion or  term  of  any  Senator  chosen  before  it  becomes  valid  as  part 
of  the  Constitution.3 

1  The  Fifteenth  Amendment  to  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States  was  pro- 
posed to  the  legislatures  of  the  several  States  by  the  Fortieth  Congress  on  the  27th 
of  February,  1869,  and  was  declared,  in  a  proclamation  of  the  Secretary  of  State, 
dated  March  30,  1870,  to  have  been  ratified  by  the  legislatures  of  twenty-nine  of 
the  thirty-seven  States. 

2  The  joint  resolution  proposing  this  amendment  was  passed  by  the  Sixty-first 
Congress  at  the  First  Session,  begun  and  held  on  the  15th  of  March,  1909,  and  was 
declared  in  a  proclamation  of  the  Secretary  of  State,  dated  February  25,  1913,  to 
have  been  ratified  by  thirty-eight  of  the  forty-eight  States. 

3  This  amendment  was  submitted  to  the  States  for  ratification  by  joint  resolu- 
tion of  the  Sixty-second  Congress,  Second  Session,  beginning  December  4,  1911. 
This  resolution  provided  that  in  lieu  of  the  first  paragraph  of  Section  3  of  Article  I 
of  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States,  and  in  lieu  of  so  much  of  paragraph  2  of  the 
same  section  as  relates  to  the  filling  of  vacancies,  the  above  be  proposed  as  an 
amendment  to  the  Constitution,  to  be  valid  to  all  intents  and  purposes  as  part  of 
the  Constitution  when  ratified  by  the  legislatures  of  three  fourths  of  the  States. 
This  amendment  was  declared,  in  a  proclamation  of  the  Secretary  of  State,  dated 
May  31,  1913,  to  have  been  ratified  by  thirty-six  of  the  forty-eight  States. 


INDEX 


Adams,  John,  President,  relation 
to  Cabinet,  43;  on  the  status 
of  the  Vice-President,  48;  on 
President's  power  of  removal, 
58;  recommendations  as  to 
executive  departments,  200; 
Jefferson,  203. 

Adams,  J.  Q.,  recommended 
additional  executive  depart- 
ments, 207. 

Admiralty,  British,  compared 
with  Navy  Department,  131. 

Advisory  Council,  the  Cabinet 
as  an,  41. 

Aerial  Mail  Service,  193. 

Agriculture,  accorded  represen- 
tation in  Cabinet,  31;  value  of 
products  of,  168. 

Agriculture,  Department  of,  cre- 
ation of,  31,  161;  compared 
with  English  Board  of  Agri- 
culture, 161;  phenomenal 
growth  of  the,  170;  recom- 
mended by  President  Hayes, 
212;  raised  to  executive  rank, 
213. 

Agriculture,  English  Board  of, 
161. 

Alaska  fishing  industry,  176. 

Alaska  reindeer  service,  114. 

Animal  Industry,  Bureau  of, 
166. 

Anson,  Sir  William,  on  the 
English  Postmaster-General, 
185. 


Anti-Trust  Acts,  prosecutions 
under  the,  155;  the  Federal 
Trade  Commission  and,  234. 

Appointment,  the  power  of, 
basis  of  President's  adminis- 
trative power,  13. 

Armies,  foreign,  comparative  size 
and  cost,  126. 

Army,  President  Taft  on  ex- 
penses and  inadequacy  of  the, 
87;  General  Staff  of  the,  124; 
universal  military  service,  125; 
the  "Continental  Army"  plan, 
125;  inadequacy  and  high  cost 
of  the,  126;  General  Wother- 
spoon  on  the  inadequacy  of 
the,  128;  Secretary  Stimson  on 
the  inadequacy  of  the,  129; 
diffusion  of  posts  and  garri- 
sons, 130;  congressional  inter- 
ference with  the,  135;  training 
of  officers,  136;  English  train- 
ing in,  136  ;  President  Roose- 
velt, on  lack  of  preparedness  of 
the,  142.  See  Militia. 

Army  reforms,  congressional  op- 
position to,  130. 

Arthur,  President,  on  decline  of 
merchant  marine,  213. 

Attorney-General,  the,  early 
status  of,  3,  22;  original  pro- 
vision for,  21;  always  consid- 
ered a  member  of  the  Cabinet, 
23;  relation  to  Judiciary,  144; 
duties  of,  149;  Jackson's  rec- 


260 


INDEX 


ommendations  as  to,  210; 
relation  to  federal  courts,  228. 

Attorney-Generalship,  develop- 
ment of,  3;  office  an  innova- 
tion, 22. 

Auditors  of  the  Treasury,  94. 

Austria-Hungary,  sea  strength 
of  navy,  142. 

Bancroft,  George,  Secretary  of 
Navy,  founded  Naval  Acad- 
emy, 136;  account  by,  of 
Foundation  of  Naval  Acad- 
emy, 138. 

Banks,  national,  96. 

Barry,  Wm.  T.,  Postmaster- 
General,  admitted  to  Cabinet, 
24,  208. 

"Bath-Tub  Trust,"  155. 

Boudinot,  Elias,  relation  to  cre- 
ation of  original  departments, 
16. 

Breckenridge,  Henry,  Assistant 
Secretary  of  War,  125. 

Bryce,  Lord,  opinion  as  to  in- 
creasing influence  of  United 
States,  1;  on  the  Cabinet,  41. 

Buchanan,  President,  relation  to 
Cabinet,  44. 

Burleson,  Postmaster-General, 
on  postal  finances,  189;  on 
government  control  of  tele- 
graphs and  telephones,  224. 

Cabinet,  creation  of,  12;  the 
first,  21;  inclusion  of  Post- 
master-General in,  24;  devel- 
opment of,  27;  status  of  the, 
41;  the  English,  41;  not  pro- 
vided by  Constitution  or  laws, 
42;  relation  of  Lincoln  to  his, 


44;  Wilson  on  relation  of  Pre- 
sident to,  44;  seats  of  members 
in  Congress,  45;  and  the  Vice- 
President,  47;  meetings,  47;  im- 
peachment of  members  of,  61, 
64;  Presidential  succession  of 
members  of,  61;  character  of 
Washington's,  199;  Washing- 
ton's first,  201;  procedure 
under  Washington  and  Ad- 
ams, 201;  attitude  of  Jackson 
to  his,  208;  the  future  of  the, 
217. 

Carroll  of  Carrollton,  Charles, 
Senator,  position  on  titles  for 
President,  50;  on  President's 
power  of  removal,  59;  on  the 
Army,  127;  and  the  Judiciary 
Bill,  143. 

Census,  Washington  on  the 
first,  158. 

Census,  Bureau  of  the,  173. 

Chief  Clerk,  duties  of,  71. 

Chief  Executives,  and  the  devel- 
opment of  the  executive  de- 
partments, 194. 

Civil  servants,  need  of  training- 
school  for,  137. 

Civil  service,  the  Federal,  73. 

Civil-Service  Commission,  72; 
relation  to  a  new  Department 
of  Education,  220. 

Civil  War,  the  navy  in  the, 
134. 

Claxton,  P.  P.,  Commissioner  of 
Education,  on  a  future  De- 
partment of  Education,  221. 

Cleveland,  President,  Depart- 
ment of  Agriculture  raised  to 
executive  rank  by,  213. 

Coast  and  Geodetic  Survey,  177. 


INDEX 


261 


Coast  Guard  Service,  consolida- 
tion of  Revenue  Cutter  and 
Life-Saving  Services,  90. 

Colleges,  training  for  Govern- 
ment service  in,  138. 

Colman,  Norman,  J.,  first  Secre- 
tary of  Agriculture,  31. 

Commerce,  President  Grant  on, 
213. 

Commerce,  Bureau  of  Foreign 
and  Domestic,  174. 

Commerce,  Department  of,  the 
solicitor  for,  153;  functions  of 
the,  172. 

Commerce  and  Labor,  Depart- 
ment of,  31;  reasons  for  crea- 
tion of,  171;  recommended  by 
President  Roosevelt,  213. 

Commercial  interests  accorded 
representation  in  Cabinet,  32. 

Comptroller  of  the  Treasury, 
94. 

Confederation,  Articles  of,  gov- 
ernment under,  8;  no  provi- 
sion for  executive  depart- 
ments, 14;  the  Executive 
under  the,  15. 

Congress,  relation  of  Cabinet  to, 
60;  party  leadership  of  Presi- 
dent and,  92;  "  government  by 
mass-meeting,"  92;  opposition 
to  army  reforms,  130;  Consti- 
tutional powers  of,  243.  See 
President;  Cabinet. 

Constitution,  the,  240. 

Consular  Service,  need  of  train- 
ing for,  138. 

"  Continental  Army  "  plan,  125. 

Continental  Congress,  powers  of, 
7;  executive  machinery  of,  15. 

Corporations,  Bureau   of,   160; 


merged  in  Federal  Trade 
Commission,  172. 

Corporations  and  the  Federal 
Trade  Commission,  232. 

Cortelyou,  George  B.,  first  Sec- 
retary of  Commerce  and 
Labor,  33. 

Cotton  production,  value  of,  169. 

Courts  of  the  United  States. 
See  Judiciary. 

Crimes,  federal  procedure  in 
prosecution  of,  147. 

Criminal  code,  the,  156. 

Cushing,  Caleb,  services  in  de- 
velopment of  office  of  Attor- 
ney-General, 38. 

Customs  duties,  90. 

Defense,  national,  Washington 
on,  118,  140;  relation  of  pen- 
sions to  the,  119;  universal 
military  service  only  adequate 
solution  of,  125;  inadequacy 
of  army  for,  128;  General 
Wotherspoon  on  inadequacy 
of  army,  128;  Taft  on  mili- 
tary policy,  126;  should  not  be 
party  question,  134;  inade- 
quacy of  navy  for,  141;  Roose- 
velt on,  142;  the  National 
Security  Congress,  142;  Adams 
on  the  relation  of  the  navy  to, 
200;  Lodge  on  the  state  of  the 
navy,  142.  See  Army;  Navy; 
Militia. 

Diplomatic  service,  need  of 
training  for,  138. 

District  Attorneys,  146. 

Domestic  tranquillity,  functions 
of  the  executive  departments 
in  insuring,  121. 


262 


INDEX 


Education,  Commissioner  of, 
112. 

Education,  Department  of,  pos- 
sibility considered,  34,  219, 
236;  need  of,  137;  opinion  of 
Commissioner  of  Education 
Claxton,  222. 

Electors,  Presidential,  254. 

Elliot,  Howard,  railroad  presi- 
dent, on  a  Department  of 
Transportation,  231. 

Ellsworth,  Senator,  on  status  of 
Vice-President,  49. 

England,  executive  departments 
of,  132;  sea  strength  of  navy 
of,  142. 

English  army,  training  in,  136. 

English  Board  of  Agriculture, 
161. 

English  Cabinet,  the,  41. 

English  Postmaster-General, 
185. 

Ewing,  Thomas,  first  Secretary 
of  the  Interior,  30, 105;  recom- 
mended Bureau  of  Agricul- 
ture, 161. 

Executive  departments,  creation 
of,  12;  meager  constitutional 
provision  for,  14 ;  development 
of,  27;  comparison  of  under- 
lying theories  in  creation  of 
original  and  later,  30;  status  of 
heads  of,  52;  organization  of, 
65;  summary  of  organization 
of,  67;  functions  of,  in  main- 
taining a  "more  perfect  Un- 
ion," 76;  compared  with  those 
of  France,  97;  compared  with 
those  of  Switzerland,  97;  lack 
of  coordination  of,  99;  func- 
tions of,  in  "insuring  domestic 


tranquillity,"  121;  compared 
with  those  of  England,  133; 
functions  of,  "in  promoting 
the  general  welfare,"  158;  il- 
logical distribution  of  func- 
tions of,  159;  functions  of,  in 
securing  certain  of  the  "bless- 
ings of  liberty,"  182;  the  Chief 
Executive  and  the  develop- 
ment of  the,  194;  probable 
developments  in,  215;  need  of 
reorganization  of,  218,  236; 
underlying  tendency  in  the 
development  of,  222. 

Executive  power,  the,  great  in- 
crease of  the,  6,  27;  Mr.  Jus- 
tice Thompson  on,  54;  influ- 
ence of  Washington  on,  199; 
under  the  Constitution,  245. 
See  President. 

Expenditures  of  the  Govern- 
ment, analysis  of,  86. 

Experts,  use  in  Government,  137. 

Fairlie,  John  A.,  on  Bureau  of 
Education,  112. 

Far-Eastern  Affairs,  Division 
of,  83. 

Federal  Executive,  and  railroad- 
building,  106;  growth  of  power 
of,  216. 

Federal  Government,  the,  gen- 
eral consideration  of,  1,  7. 

Federalists,  Jackson  and  the,  211. 

Fisheries,  Bureau  of,  176. 

Fishing  industries,  176. 

Fiske,  John,  on  status  of  Presi- 
dent, 5. 

Foreign  Affairs,  State  Depart- 
ment originally  Department 
of,  16;  duties  of,  17. 


INDEX 


263 


Foreign  relations,  cared  for  by 
State  Department,  79. 

Forests,  German,  163. 

Forests,  National,  163. 

Forest  Service,  162. 

France,  executive  departments 
of,  97;  size  and  cost  of  army  on 
peace  basis,  127;  sea  strength 
of  navy  of,  142. 

Franking  privilege,  abuse  of, 
190. 

Frauds,  postal,  192. 

Gardner,  A.  P.,  140. 

Garrison,  Secretary  of  War,  125. 

Gary,  James  A.,  Postmaster- 
General,  185. 

General  Land  Office,  107. 

General  Staff  of  the  Army,  124. 

General  welfare,  functions  of  the 
executive  departments  in  pro- 
moting the,  158. 

Geological  Survey,  107. 

German  forests,  163. 

Germany,  size  and  cost  of  army 
on  peace  basis,  127 ;  sea 
strength  of  navy  of,  142. 

Gerry,  Elbridge,  States'  Rights 
and  the  early  Executive,  3. 

Goodnow,  President  of  Johns 
Hopkins  University,  on  the 
executive  power  of  the  Presi- 
dent, 13;  on  the  power  of 
removal,  56. 

Government,  English,  133. 

Grant,  President,  and  the  De- 
partment of  Justice,  210;  on 
Commerce,  213. 

Hale,  Senator,  on  status  of  In- 
terstate Commerce  Commis- 


sion, 227;  on  department  coor- 
dination, 236. 

Hamilton,  Alexander,  probable 
opinion  as  to  power  of  Presi- 
dent, 10;  first  Secretary  of  the 
Treasury,  21;  influence  on 
Federal  Executive,  201. 

Harrison,  Benjamin,  President, 
on  merchant  marine,  213. 

Haskin,  Frederick  J.,  on  postal 
deficit,  189. 

Hayes,  President,  recommended 
Department  of  Agriculture, 
212. 

Hitchcock,  Frank  H.,  Post- 
master-General, reforms  of, 
185,  189;  and  the  parcel  post, 
186;  and  the  postal  savings 
system,  191. 

Hoar,  Senator,  on  status  of  In- 
terstate Commerce  Commis- 
sion, 228. 

Home  Department.  See  Depart- 
ment of  the  Interior. 

Home  Office,  Lowell  on  English, 
96. 

Immigration,  Bureau  of,  180. 

Impeachment  of  Cabinet  offi- 
cers, 60. 

Impeachment,  extent  of,  241. 

Indian  affairs,  114. 

Indians,  relation  of  the  Govern- 
ment to,  116;  wealth  and 
status  of,  117. 

Interior,  Department  of  the, 
creation  of,  shows  increased 
power  of  the  Executive,  27; 
creation  of,  28;  functions  of, 
96;  reasons  for  creation  of,  99, 
101;    former    supervision    of 


264 


INDEX 


railroads  by,  105;  recom- 
mended by  Madison,  204; 
recommended  by  J.  Q.  Ad- 
ams, 207;  recommended  by 
Jackson,  210. 

Internal  revenue,  93. 

Internal  revenue,  Solicitor  of, 
152. 

Interstate  Commerce  Commis- 
sion, nucleus  of  a  possible 
Department  of  Railroads,  224; 
status  considered,  226. 

Interstate  Trade,  Department 
of,  possibility  of,  236. 

Italy,  sea  strength  of  navy  of, 
142. 

Jackson,  Andrew,  President,  in- 
cludes Postmaster-General  in 
Cabinet,  24;  relation  to  Cabi- 
net, 208;  recommended  addi- 
tional executive  departments, 
209;  and  extension  of  Federal 
Executive,  211. 

Japan,  sea  strength  of  navy  of, 
142. 

Jay,  John,  Secretary  of  Foreign 
Affairs  under  Confederation, 
20. 

Jefferson,  Thomas,  first  Secre- 
tary of  State,  21;  as  President, 
relation  to  Cabinet,  44;  atti- 
tude on  executive  power,  201; 
on  procedure  in  the  Cabinets 
of  Washington  and  Adams, 
201. 

Johnson,  President,  relation  to 
Cabinet,  44. 

Jones,  Commodore  John  Paul, 
plan  for  Executive  depart- 
ments, 15. 


Judicial  functions  of  the  Inter- 
state Commerce  Commission, 
227. 

Judiciary  Bill,  143. 

Judiciary,  the  federal,  145;  rela- 
tion of  Attorney-General  to 
Federal  Courts,  228;  the  con- 
stitutional powers  of,  248. 

Justice,  Department  of,  func- 
tions of,  illustrate  power  of 
Federal  Executive,  5;  develop- 
ment of,  35;  creation  of,  38; 
functions  of,  146;  organiza- 
tion of,  148;  recommended  by 
Madison,  204. 

Justice,  foreign  ministers  of,  and 
the  Attorney-General,  144. 

Kitchen     Cabinet,     Jackson's, 

208. 
Knox,  Henry,  first  Secretary  of 

War,  21,  115. 

Labor,  Department  of,  indica- 
tion of  increased  power  of  Ex- 
ecutive, 10;  creation  of,  33; 
functions  of,  178;  policy  of, 
179;  labor  organizations  and, 
180;  discussed  under  various 
administrations,  214. 

Labor,  Secretary  of,  mediation 
in  industrial  disputes,  180. 

Lands,  Government,  extent  and 
value  of,  1 08. 

Lane,  Secretary  of  the  Interior, 
on  the  Indians,  117. 

Langdon,  John,  Senator,  50. 

Latin-American  Affairs,  Divi- 
sion of,  82. 

Learned,  Dr.,  on  position  of  first 
Attorney-General,  22. 


INDEX 


265 


Legislative  powers,  under  the 
Constitution,  240. 

Lincoln,  President,  relation  to 
Cabinet,  44. 

Lodge,  Henry  Cabot,  Senator, 
on  inadequacy  of  the  navy, 
142;  on  Washington's  Cabi- 
net, 199. 

Lowell,  President  of  Harvard 
University,  on  the  English 
Attorney-General,  22;  on  Eng- 
lish Home  Office,  96;  on  the 
English  Admiralty,  131 ;  on  the 
English  navy,  135;  on  English 
Board  of  Agriculture,  162. 

Maclay,  William,  Senator,  on 
the  Status  of  the  Vice-Presi- 
dent, 48;  on  the  Constitution: 
his  Journal,  51;  on  the  federal 
courts,  143. 

MacVeagh,  Franklin,  Secretary 
of  Treasury,  86. 

McHenry,  Secretary  of  War,  2. 

Mcllhenny,  John  A.,  President 
of  Civil  Service  Commission, 
74. 

McLean,  John,  Postmaster- 
General,  208. 

Madison,  President,  recom- 
mendation for  additional  de- 
partments, 203;  J.  Q.  Adams 
on,  206. 

Mahan,  Admiral,  135. 

Mails,  fraudulent  use  of  the, 
192. 

Manufacturing  interests  ac- 
corded representation  in 
Cabinet,  32. 

"  Mass  meeting,  government 
by,"  92. 


Merchant  marine,  Presidential 
recommendations  as  to,  213. 

Mexican  Affairs,  Division  of, 
120;  formerly  in  Division  of 
Latin-American  Affairs,  82. 

Military  policy,  President  Taft 
on,  126,  130. 

Militia  Affairs,  Division  of, 
125. 

Militia,  place  of,  in  national 
defense,  125;  General  Wother- 
spoon  on  the,  128;  constitu- 
tional status  of  the,  252. 

Mines,  Bureau  of,  107. 

Money  orders,  190. 

Monroe,  Secretary  of  State,  on 
the  status  of  the  Attorney- 
General,  3,  23;  President, 
advocated  extending  execu- 
tive power,  205. 

Morris,  Gouverneur,  plan  for 
executive  departments,  15. 

National  Security  League,  142. 

Naval  Academy,  as  training- 
school,  136;  foundation  of, 
138. 

Navies,  foreign,  comparison  of, 
142. 

Navy,  Department  of  the, 
created,  25;  compared  with 
the  British  Admiralty,  132. 

Navy,  President  Taft  on  ex- 
penses of  the,  87;  a  matter  for 
experts,  135;  training  of  offi- 
cers for,  136;  strength  of,  in 
1789,  140;  inadequacy  of,  141; 
summary  of  vessels  of,  in 
1915,  141;  Senator  Lodge  on 
the  state  of  the,  142;  active 
personnel,  comparative  state- 


266 


INDEX 


ment  of,  142;  comparative  sea 
strength  of,  142;  warship  ton- 
nage of  the  principal  naval 
powers,  142;  President  Adams 
on  the,  200. 

Navy,  Secretary  of,  original 
duties  of,  25. 

Near-Eastern  Affairs,  Division 
of,  83. 

Ogg,  Frederick  A.,  on  govern- 
ments of  Europe,  97. 

Oleomargarine,  tax  on,  93. 

Organization  of  the  executive 
departments,  65. 

Panama  Canal,  123;  General 
Wotherspoon  on  lack  of  de- 
fense of,  129. 

Parcel  post  service,  186. 

Parks,  National,  110. 

Parties,  political,  relation  to  the 
President  as  a  party  leader,  6, 
9,  11,  91,  218,  223. 

Patent  Office,  110. 

Pensions,  Bureau  of,  118. 

Pensions,  President  Taft  on,  87; 
relation  of,  to  national  defense, 
118. 

Peters,  Assistant  Secretary  of 
the  Treasury,  120. 

Philippine  Islands,  123. 

Phillips,  Third  Assistant  Secre- 
tary of  State,  120. 

Polk,  President,  recommended 
reorganization  of  executive 
departments,  212. 

Pontgibaud,  Chevalier  de,  opin- 
ion of,  as  to  simplicity  of  early 
administration,  2. 

Population  in  1791  and  1916, 158. 


Postal  savings  system,  190. 

Postmaster-General,  the,  not 
originally  a  member  of  the 
Cabinet,  24;  becomes  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Cabinet,  24;  duties 
of,  183. 

Postmaster-General,  First  As- 
sistant, duties  of,  186. 

Postmaster-General,  Second  As- 
sistant, duties  of,  186. 

Postmaster-General,  the  Eng- 
lish, 185. 

Post-Office  Department,  the, 
182;  establishment  of,  24;  par- 
cel post  service,  186;  finances, 
189;  money  orders,  190;  postal 
savings  system,  190;  in  ad- 
ministration of  Monroe,  205; 
Jackson  on  the,  210;  relation 
of,  to  transportation,  230. 

Post-Office  of  New  York  City, 
annual  receipts  of,  184. 

Post-Offices,  183. 

Poultry  production,  value  of, 
169. 

"Preparedness,"  131;  "  Against 
War,"  A.  P.  Gardner's,  140. 
See  Defense. 

Presidents,  list  of,  239. 

President,  the,  relation  to  Fed- 
eral Executive,  5;  develop- 
ment of,  into  party  leader,  6,  9, 
11,91,218,223;  present  pow- 
er of,  discussed,  216;  future 
powers  of,  217;  constitutional 
powers  of,  247. 

Prisons,  federal,  153. 

Probable  developments  in  the 
Federal  Executive,  215. 

Public  works,  expenditures  for, 
122. 


INDEX 


267 


Railroads,  Commissioner  of,  230. 
Railroads,  Department  of,  pos- 
sibility considered,   224.    See 
Transportation. 
Railroads,  former  supervision  of, 
by  Interior  Department,  105. 

Randolph,  Attorney-General, 
opinion  as  to  status  of  Attor- 
ney-General, 3 ;  not  head  of  an 
executive  department,  4. 

Reclamation  Service,  108. 

Redfield,  Secretary  of  Com- 
merce, 175. 

Reform  in  distribution  of  func- 
tions of  executive  depart- 
ments, 159. 

Reindeer  service,  Alaska,  114. 

Removal,  Presidential  power  of, 
52,  56. 

Representatives,  House  of,  con- 
stitutional powers  of,  240. 

Revenues  of  Government, 
sources  of,  89. 

Rivers  and  harbors,  123. 

Roads,  Office  of  Public,  164. 

Roosevelt,  Franklin  D.,  Assist- 
ant Secretary  of  Navy,  140. 

Roosevelt,  President,  on  lack  of 
national  defense,  142;  recom- 
mendation by,  of  Department 
of  Commerce  and  Industries, 
213;  on  Bureau  of  Corpora- 
tions, 232. 

Root,  Secretary,  reorganized 
State  Department,  80. 

Rural  Delivery  Service,  188. 

Russia,  sea  strength  of  navy,  142. 

Schouler,  James,  on  depart- 
ments, 19;  on  Secretary  Stod- 
dert,  26. 


Secretary     to     the     President, 

status  of,  65. 
Senate,  concurrence  of,  in  ap- 
pointment of  heads  of  execu- 
tive departments,  29;  consti- 
tutional powers  of,  241. 
Senators,  direct  election  of,  257. 
Shipping,  of  United  States,  178. 
Smith,    Easby,    on    Attorney- 
General,  38. 
Soley,    James    K.,    on    Naval 

Academy,  138. 
Solicitor-General,  duties  of,  150. 
Spanish-American      War,      the 
navy  in  the,  134;   effect  on 
status  of  President,  216. 
Spooner,  Senator,  on  status  of 
Interstate    Commerce    Com- 
mission, 226. 
Standards,  Bureau  of,  175. 
State,  Department  of,  creation 
of,    16;   organization   of,   70; 
functions  of,  79. 
State,  Secretary  of,   duties   of, 

80. 
State  Department,  Solicitor  for 

the,  151. 
State  jealousy  of  central  power, 

16. 
"States'   Rights,"  obsolescence 

of  the  doctrine  of,  216. 
Stimson,  Secretary  of  War,  on 
the  inadequacy  of  the  Army, 
129. 
Stoddert,  Benjamin,  first  Secre- 
tary of  the  Navy,  26. 
Supreme    Court,    same    as    in 

1789,  1. 
Switzerland,    executive    depart- 
ments of,  97;  system  of  uni- 
versal military  service,  125. 


268 


INDEX 


Taft,  President,  on  pensions,  87; 
on  military  policy,  126;  com- 
parison of  cost  and  size  of 
United  States  Army  and  for- 
eign armies,  127. 

Telegraphs  and  telephones,  rec- 
ommendation of  Postmaster- 
General  on,  223;  English 
Government  control  of,  224. 

Tenure-of-Office  Acts,  57;  reason 
for,  60;  affect  of  repeal  of,  92. 

Thayer,  James  Bradley,  on 
duties  of  Attorney-General,  35. 

"Third  House,"  President  virtu- 
ally a,  5. 

Thompson,  Mr.  Justice,  opinion 
on  executive  power,  54. 

Titles  for  the  President,  50. 

Trade  Commission,  the  Federal, 
creation  and  functions,  232. 

Transportation.  See  Railroads. 

Transportation,  Department  of, 
possibility  of,  34,  236;  reasons 
for,  180;  recommendation  of 
Howard  Elliott,  President  of 
New  York,  New  Haven  and 
Hartford  Railway  Company, 
231. 

Treasurer  of  the  United  States, 
the,  95. 

Treasury,  Comptroller  of  the, 
94. 

Treasury  Department,  creation 
of,  19;  diversity  of  opinion  as 
to  organization  of,  19;  differ- 
ences in  organization  from 
other  departments,  69;  func- 
tions of,  85. 

Treasury,  Secretary  of,  power  of 
the,  95. 

Treasury,  Solicitor  of  the,  152. 


Universal  military  service,  125. 
University,  a  national,  urged  by 
Washington,  138. 

Vice-President,  not  in  Cabinet, 
10,  48;  the  status  of,  48;  con- 
stitutional powers  of,  241. 

Vice-Presidents,  list  of,  239. 

Vinton,  Samuel  F.,  reported  bill 
for  Department  of  the  Inter- 
ior, 28. 

Wage-earners,  accorded  repre- 
sentation in  Cabinet,  33. 

Waite,  Chief  Justice,  opinion  on 
acts  of  President,  53. 

Walker,  Robert  J.,  Secretary  of 
Treasury,  drafted  bill  for 
Department  of  the  Interior, 
28;  on  need  of  Home  Depart- 
ment, 101. 

Wanamaker,  John,  Postmaster- 
General,  185. 

War,  Department  of,  early  offi- 
cial simplicity,  2;  creation  of, 
18;  expenditures  of,  121; 
functions,  121;  non-military 
duties,  122. 

War,  European,  changes  in  de- 
partments because  of,  120. 

War,  Secretary  of,  original  sal- 
ary of,  2. 

War  of  1812,  navy  in  the,  134. 

War  Risk  Insurance,  Bureau  of, 
120.        i 

Washington,  President,  changes 
in  Federal  Executive  since 
Administration  of,  1;  kept 
Vice-President  out  of  Cabinet, 
10;  continued  executive  ma- 
chinery of  the  Confederation, 


INDEX 


269 


20;  relation  to  Cabinet,  43;  on 
a  national  university,  138;  on 
national  defense,  140;  on  the 
First  Census,  158;  recom- 
mendations as  to  executive 
departments,  197;  influence  on 
the  Federal  Executive,  199. 

Weather  Bureau,  165. 

West  Point  Military  Academy, 
training  at,  136. 

Western-European  affairs,  Divi- 
sion of,  84. 

Whitney,  Secretary,  and  the 
"New  Navy,"  134. 

Wickersham,  Attorney-General, 
subordination  of  district  attor- 
neys, 39. 


Wilson,  President,  on  status  of 
President,  5;  theory  and  prac- 
tice of,  6;  on  position  of  Cabi- 
net, 44;  foreign  policy  of 
United  States  defined,  85;  on 
party  leadership  of  Chief 
Executive,  91;  relation  of  Pres- 
ident, to  Congress  92;  "govern- 
ment by  mass-meeting,"  92. 

Wilson,  William  Bauchop,  first 
Secretary  of  Labor,  33;  on 
policy  of  the  Department,  179. 

Wirt,  William,  limitation  of  du- 
ties of  Attorney-General,  36. 

Wotherspoon,  Major-General, 
Chief-of-Staff,  on  inadequacy 
of  army,  128. 


(£f)e  Bitoetjsibe  pre?!* 

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